


Beyond the Bubble

by drarrysgirl



Category: Drarry - Fandom, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Bottom Draco, Drarry, First Time, Hogwarts Eighth Year, M/M, Male Slash, Shower Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-01
Updated: 2015-10-01
Packaged: 2018-04-24 07:11:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 32
Words: 62,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4910053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/drarrysgirl/pseuds/drarrysgirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I think we're going to be more than just friends Potter..."</p><p>After a night spent on on the Hospital Ward with Draco as Trainee Healer, Harry begins a tentative friendship with his former rival. But can their friendship survive outside of the bubble they formed around themselves ...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so this is the first thing I have ever written in my life. It was months and months of picking it up, writing bits then dropping it again because I kept losing my way.
> 
> It is far from perfect, in fact it is a bit rubbish and there is no actual plot to it at all. But it was all good practice and I had to post it because the wonderful @philsopherscone did such great beta work it would have rude not to.
> 
> So here it...

Harry heard a sickening crunch as a blunt force hit him in his right leg. The pitch and crowds blurred into a colourful haze of reds, golds, silvers and greens as his broom lurched forwards, hurtling him towards the ground. He landed with a thud and rolled onto his back as the pain hit him like a wrecking ball.

He looked down at his leg which was lying at a funny angle. He felt sick and faint at the sight. Voices were growing louder all around him as people rushed to see if he was okay.

"Harry are you all right mate? Urgh you're leg? That looks nasty...."

Ron's face was suddenly in front of Harry, full of concern mixed with anger. His ears were red and he was frowning, glaring at something Harry couldn't see over his shoulder.

"That bastard, he did that on purpose. Wait until I get my hands on him -"

"Oh Ron, stop you'll only make it worse." 

Hermione was now at Ron’s side peering down at Harry her cheeks flustered with worry.

They were a half hour into the biggest game of the Quidditch season - Gryffindor versus Slytherin. Harry had caught sight of the snitch twice but some foul play from the Slytherin team had prevented him from catching it. He was in the middle of a spectacular dive, the snitch in his sight when someone had whacked him with tremendous power in his right shin with a Beater's bat. The entire school had turned out to watch the match and he could vaguely hear Luna's infamous lion headdress roaring in the background. He wasn't going to be defeated by a sneaky Slytherin cheat. He wanted to get back on his broom and win this game - even if it killed him.

"I'm fine." Harry lied. 

He was in so much pain he felt like he was going to vomit but he wasn't going to let that stand in his way of winning. He'd never lost a match to their rivals before - and seven years, one war and a broken leg wasn't going to change that.

Harry tried to move but the pain proved too much and he let out an uncontrolled moan of agony. The members of the crowd were all busy arguing amongst themselves and appealing to Madame Hooch for the Slytherin beater to be disqualified, all except Ron, Hermione and Seamus who were trying to keep Harry still, lest he do himself more damage.

"Harry we need to get you to the Hospital Wing, your leg looks broken it needs looking at" Hermione said with a tone that suggested she wasn't about to be argued with.

"It could just be a fracture Hermione, I can mend those easily enough." exclaimed Seamus. 

He had mended a few broken fingers and noses in the aftermath of the Battle of Hogwarts the previous spring. However this was under the experienced watch of Madame Pomfrey and Harry wasn't sure how confident he was of Seamus's skills in her absence, especially on a bone as essential as his leg. He might have considered had it been a finger, or a toe...

"Erm, I think it’s best to wait until I see Madame Pomfrey, thanks Seamus." Harry said quietly. 

He was getting hot and dizzy now and his robes were sticking to him. He wanted to get away from the crowds all looking down on him and let Madame Pomfrey work her healing powers on him as she had done on so many occasions previously.

A moment later Professor McGonagall came rushing over, looking formidable. Her brow was puckered in a furious frown and her lips pursed so tightly her mouth was nothing more than a thin horizontal line under her nose.

"Mr Potter, up to the Hospital Wing immediately. Mrs Granger and Mr Weasley you can assist him please. YOU." she yelled suddenly over Harry's shoulder and he turned as best he could to see Theodore Nott, the Slytherin beater looking appropriately alarmed. He was surrounded by the entire Gryffindor team who were hurling abuse for his blatant cheating.

"Up to my office now Mr Nott. Blatant and disgraceful violence is inexcusable and will not be tolerated do you hear me. Professor Slughorn will meet us there to decide your punishment. GO." she shrieked when Nott just stood there, apparently frozen with fear. 

He rushed off with his head down as the Gryffindors in the crowd jeered him. Some of the more bold members of the Slytherin crowds cheered but most had the sense to keep quiet.

In the flurry of activity as the crowds dispersed and McGonagall warned all in earshot of the consequences of any vigilantes who sought revenge on the Slytherin, nobody noticed Lavender Brown slip through the crowds to crouch at Harry's side. He smiled feebly to her as he waited for Ron and Hermione to turn their attentions back to him and help him up when she quietly took out her wand.

"Hold still Harry, I know the spell to fix your leg." 

She beamed at him with a bright smile and she waved her wand silently, casting a spell without enunciation.

Harry felt a familiar sensation swim through his leg and it took a few moments for him to realise why he recognised the waves of numbness that flowed down from his thigh to the tips of his toes. To his mind’s eye came an image of a dashing white smile underneath a head of wavy blonde curls. Lockhart had caused this very same sensation in Harry arm six years before - when he made all the bones in his arm disappear.

"There - is that better?" Lavender asked loudly and everyone turned to see her patting Harry's leg lightly and smiling at him as though she had just handed him a sack full of galleons and was awaiting his gratitude.

"Erm, thanks Lavender, but I think you've made my bones - melt." sighed Harry. 

He wasn't in pain anymore being that his bones were no longer broken but rather his bones we're no longer anything. Instead he felt exasperated and just wanted to get the hell away from everyone. 

"Melted? What are you talking about Potter? Are you feeling faint?" asked McGonagall as she placed her palm over Harry's forehead. 

He sighed again and mustering all his patience explained to her Lavender's woeful attempt at administering him aid.

"You silly girl." McGonagall boomed and her nostrils flared so wide Harry feared her brains might suddenly slip out. "You NEVER, I repeat, NEVER attempt any kinds of healing charm unless you are fully qualified."

Lavender looked close to tears as she shot Harry a pleading look as if begging him to defend her. He couldn't muster the energy however and instead lay his head back down on the cold ground and closed his eyes. He was vaguely aware of her cries as she ran away while he was manoeuvred on to a stretcher someone had conjured by Ron and Seamus. 

Ron was still muttering what he planned to do to Nott when he got hold of him but McGonagall didn’t hear him over the crowds.

"Take him up to the Hospital Wing please Mr Weasley - I'll follow shortly." McGonagall ordered, before firing off after Nott. Harry smiled for a moment, glad he wasn't in Nott's position right now. He'd rather have a broken leg than face a furious McGonagall.

"I'll come with you." Hermione said from behind as Ron and Seamus lifted Harry on to the stretcher. He turned around to see that the entire team was following him as they proceeded up the grounds toward the castle. The crowds were beginning to disperse now but everyone was walking past Harry and his entourage to get a better look at how badly injured he was. He was sure he overheard a tiny first year boy shout to his friend over the noise. "Yeah I think his legs been blasted off."

Brilliant thought Harry. Could today get any worse?


	2. Chapter Two

Draco looked at his watch and noted he still had four hours left until his shift on the Hospital Wing was over. It had been quiet with absolutely nothing of interest happening since the moment he walked onto the ward at 8am that morning. He had refreshed all the beds, restocked the linen cupboard and done an inventory of the medicine stores. 

He had been shadowing Madame Pomfrey since returning to school back in September for experience before he began Healer Training. She had been most accommodating and let Draco get involved as much as his abilities would allow. He'd seen some fairly amusing sights during the weeks he'd been helping out. One memorable afternoon a third year girl was brought in by her friend with a spectacular set of pigs trotters where his feet ought to be. Apparently she had attempted a charm to remove her nail polish and it had gone horribly wrong from there. Madame Pomfrey sorted her out in no time and Draco was impressed that she had managed to keep a straight face.

She was currently away for the weekend, tending to her sister who had contracted a nasty case of Dragon Pox and wasn't due back until Monday morning. She had assured Draco he could manage alone without her for any simple injuries and incidents. At most he would likely be left to deal with a couple of first years who had tried to curse away pimples. Draco was particularly skilled in potions and had impressed Madame Pomfrey by preparing many of the more simple draughts and remedies she used regularly. She left instructions on the basics and a list of the potions he was able to administer. Only professional Healers could administer the more serious potions so told him should anything more sinister crop up, then McGonagall would contact her for emergency advice via the Floo Network.

After finishing off some paperwork and tidying the matron's desk, Draco was now sat idly looking out of the high windows over to the Quidditch pitch. It was Gryffindor versus Slytherin so the whole school had naturally turned out to watch. Not only was it the biggest game of the year in terms of team rivalry but “The Boy Who Lived” happened to be the star seeker. Crowds of First Years fought for the best positions to watch their hero in action. Potter for his part seemed oblivious to the increase in his popularity and Draco noticed he avoided the crowds at the entrance to the changing rooms asking for autographs by mounting his broom and getting up in the air as quickly as he could. The crowds were wild and Draco could hear that ridiculous headdress that Loony girl wore roaring loudly all the way from the ward.

It seemed a lifetime ago that he cared about Quidditch scores and house cups. He hadn't even contemplated returning to his house team this year - the Slytherin’s willingness to forget the war and the actions of those on the "wrong side" did not always extend to the rest of the school. This was largely due of course to the fact that most Slytherins were in fact on the wrong side themselves.

Since returning for his 8th year Draco had kept to himself - an attitude previously unheard from the bold and brash blonde. He found himself seeking his own company and avoided situations that would attract attention. The rest of the school for their part left him to it and nobody seemed eager for a return to a pre-war Draco.

Including Harry Potter. He wasn't sure what to expect from Potter once they arrived back at Hogwarts and he did his best to avoid the most famous person in the castle as best he could. They shared a number of classes together however and obviously the Great Hall was unavoidable and so it was only their second day when Draco had passed Potter at breakfast. He held his breath, unsure of what would happen and had been massively relieved when Potter simply nodded politely in acknowledgement and continued on with his day. 

This was to be become a regular pattern, with the boys keeping well out each other's way and should they find themselves in one another's paths they would simply nod and keep going. Draco had even smiled feebly at Potter a couple of times and was surprised when he smiled back.

The unspoken truce had made Draco’s return to Hogwarts bearable. The rest of the student body seemed to think that if The Chosen One had moved on and seemed indifferent to “the Malfoy boy” then it was good enough for them. So outside of his very small circle of friends, Draco didn’t really speak to anyone. He kept himself busy, helping out on the ward, studying hard and in his spare time he prepared various potions and draughts for Madame Pomfrey as practice. 

He was roused suddenly from his daydreaming by an uproar from the crowds. A Slytherin versus Gryffindor match was always guaranteed to bring out a raucous crowd - but there was something in the jeering that caught Draco’s attention. He looked over in time to see a certain Gryffindor seeker lose control of his broom and fall with sickening force to the ground, landing with his leg sticking out at horrible angle which made Draco feel sick.

His stomach clenched and he jumped to his feet instinctively. Potter was obviously injured after a fall from that height and the crowds were quickly rushing to his aid. He felt like a lead weight had dropped through his stomach. Draco could no longer see Potter but his attention was captured by a surprisingly speedy Professor McGonagall hurtling across the pitch seemingly reprimanding Theo, who stood a few feet behind Potter with his head down. Draco made a fairly educated guess that Nott had performed an illegal maneuver to ensure Potter would not lead Gryffindor to yet another victory. 

He felt a flash of anger at his fellow Slytherin. Honestly what was he playing at? The rest of the school didn’t need any more excuses to hate most of the Slytherin house - and trying to break their hero certainly wouldn't help. There was a time when Draco would have loved nothing more than to see Potter knocked off his broom. But things had changed - Draco had changed - and so had his feeling for Potter.

He looked down at the small group of people making their way toward the castle. Someone had conjured a stretcher for Potter and Weasley and Finnegan were carrying him up with the aid of some other Potter worshipers.

Draco suddenly felt panicked. They'll be bringing him here any second. He wished Madame Pomfrey was here. He was suddenly aware of how little he knew about anything. What was he expected to do? He couldn't mend bones? He was going to look like an absolute prat in front of the entire Gryffindor team, in front of Potter. 

He needed to stay calm and act professional. He walked purposefully to the bed at the end of the row nearest the window and began preparing it to receive a patient. His stomach was suddenly churning - he told himself this was because he was about to face his first emergency without the experienced guidance of Madame Pomfrey and nothing at all do with the identity of the patient in question. That was of course a lie. The doors suddenly burst open and Potter was carried in by his quarry and Draco steeled himself before turning to face them.


	3. Chapter Three

Harry lay on the stretcher feeling helpless and a bit pathetic. He was used to injuries and pain, having survived more than most people’s fair share, but the accompanying feelings of vulnerability and weakness were still a struggle. As Ron and Seamus carried him into the ward he awaited the usually exasperated voice of Madame Pomfrey so was surprised when instead he heard another familiar voice over by the far window.

"Bring him over here please and lay him on the bed."

Harry's head snapped up and he located Draco Malfoy stood by the end bed at the furthest point of the ward under the high arched windows. He was wearing white and green Healer's robes and his arms were crossed behind his back. Malfoy looked calm and professional and yet he was bouncing on the balls of this feet ever so slightly, a tic giving away his nervousness.

"What are you doing here Malfoy?" Harry asked rather bluntly. 

He had long accepted the fact that the end of the war seemed to have brought about an unspoken truce between the two former rivals however he wasn't exactly thrilled at the idea of lying helpless with one useless, floppy leg at the mercy of Draco Malfoy to heal him.

"I'm shadowing Madame Pomfrey for experience before I start healer training." Draco explained, his chin tilted up in slight defiance as if challenging anyone to argue with him. 

The sight was so familiar to Harry and he found it a strangely endearing. Since their return to Hogwarts he had given Malfoy a wide berth and they had slipped into a civil disregard for one another. Should they pass in the corridor or during meals in the Great Hall they would simply nod in a brief acknowledgment of one another and carry on about their business. He knew of course that Malfoy was working with Madame Pomfrey, he had noticed him in his Healer robes. But it hadn’t occurred to him on the way up to the Hospital Wing that it would be Malfoy looking after him.

"Where is Madame Pomfrey?" asked Hermione who hadn't left Harry's side.  
"Harry has lost all the bones in his right leg and needs Skele-Gro straight away." She explained, looking at Malfoy with a polite indifference, as though he were an actual healer of whom she'd never met. 

She and Ron had followed Harry's lead and simply ignored Malfoy. They had discussed the drastic change in his demeanor of course when they'd first arrived back, and Hermione was quick to point out that it would have been impossible to have gone through what Malfoy went through without it changing you in some way. For Malfoy, the events of the war seemed to have humbled him and knocked the arrogance and self-importance out of him. He was no longer the centre of attention amongst his fellow Slytherin’s as he used to be and seemed to be happier hiding in the background these day.

"She is away tending to a family member at the moment. She won’t be back for two days." Malfoy explained. He seemed to fidget and looked at the floor before adding  
"I am not able to administer medicines as I'm not qualified. Potter will have to stay and I can make sure his leg is treated in the meantime until Madame Pomfrey returns. There's a simple draught I can prepare to ease any discomfort."

Harry suddenly felt as though every bone in his body had melted along with the ones in his leg. He was facing two nights alone in the Hospital Wing with Draco Malfoy and he was partly incapacitated.

He looked up and for the first time he locked eyes with Malfoy. They held each other’s gaze for a moment before Malfoy looked away, biting his lip. Harry thought he looked embarrassed. He noticed a slight blush on Malfoy's pale face before he suddenly moved and began pulling back the bedcovers, apparently for Harry to be placed inside.

A rush of emotions raced through Harry at once. Panic, annoyance, frustration, embarrassment. He and Malfoy hadn’t had a conversation since coming back to school – how were they going to navigate an entire weekend alone together? Some other emotion was bubbling up in Harry's chest that he didn’t recognise but it was making him panic nonetheless.

"So I'm gonna be left here all weekend with no bloody bones in my leg and you're just going to sit and watch until Pomfrey gets back?" said Harry, aware he sounded rather petulant. 

"I'll make you comfortable as I can until she gets back." Draco said. 

He was definitely blushing now Harry noticed and quickly began busying himself with getting Harry's cubicle ready.

“Hard luck mate…” Ron said, with a massive grin. 

The prat.

He ran through the worst case scenarios in his head – Malfoy would take the piss out of him once everyone had left, Harry would punch him and they’d continue to ignore each other until Madame Pomfrey gets back. It seemed unlikely however. Harry couldn’t be bothered fighting or arguing with Malfoy, or anyone, anymore and Malfoy for his part seemed to take his role as Trainee Healer quite seriously. He’d managed to keep a low profile and stay out of trouble since the beginning of term anyway. Maybe they could get through this by simply pretending the other did not exist.

Harry quickly resigned himself to the situation and mentally berated himself. He'd been through worse than this. He was going to have to suck it up and get over it. If they were right and Malfoy really had changed, then it shouldn't be too bad, if they stay out of each other’s way.

"Right then, you lot better clear out before McGonagall shows up. She looked murderous just now and if she sees half the team in the Hospital Wing she'll blow a fuse" Harry told the others.

Truth be told he just didn’t want any witnesses to him being looked after for by Malfoy.

“You’ll be fine Harry.” Hermione said bracingly. She gripped his arm and gave him a meaningful look.

“Yeah, you and Ferret will have a great time.” Ron teased and jumped back quickly out of reach as Hermione tried to slap his arm. 

“Ron stop it. You’ll be fine.” she repeated.  
Harry hoped that she was right. Hermione usually was.

The rest of the team trouped out reluctantly and Hermione gave Harry a quick peck on the cheek before following after Ron, who Harry could hear giggling from outside in the corridor. 

They were alone.


	4. Chapter Four

As the door closed Draco mentally lectured himself: Stay calm. You know what you're doing. Try not to make a fool of yourself.

As he turned to face Potter he felt a reckless urge to just throw caution to the wind and simply tell him all of the feelings he’d be keeping carefully hidden. Watching Potter so helpless and broken made him want to seize him tight in an embrace and never let him go. Shaking himself back to reality he was shocked to see Potter struggling to move from the stretcher as if he was going to climb into the bed by himself. The git was determined to be independent even at the risk of breaking his own neck. Draco rushed around the bed and grabbed Potter, putting his arm around Potter's back and bringing Potter's arm up over his own shoulder.

"Merlin Potter be careful, you'll break the other leg then we will be in trouble"

He was just mulling over how much he liked referring to himself and Potter as a "we" when his patient suddenly turned and placed his back to the bed to ease himself up on to it. In his distraction Draco hadn't coordinated his own movements accordingly and was now stood face to face with Potter and found himself once again transfixed by those startling emerald eyes. The ward around them seemed to disappear and Draco lost all ability to form a coherent thought. He was transfixed on the face in front of him and everything else fell away in to nothingness.

They’d only been alone for five bloody seconds and he was crumbling already. Potter stared back, unblinking and Draco was lost, swimming in the depths of the green pools in front of him.

Potter coughed suddenly and looked away as he began pulling himself up to the bed with his hands and Draco thought he heard him mumble thanks. He was shaken out of his reverie as he watched Potter lift himself on to the bed. 

Draco’s eyes were drawn to Potter's arms which were surprisingly toned and strong. He felt a jolt in his stomach in reaction to his train of thought and quickly snapped himself out of it and did his best to arrange his face in to a vacant expression as Potter made to swing his legs around on to the bed. Draco assisted him and glanced up cautiously. Potter was now sat with a strangely endearing look on his face as he let out a gentle sigh and looked around the ward. He seemed content which was strange given the circumstances and Draco was surprised at the sudden rush of affection he felt for him in that moment. He shook his head - keep it together Draco. he scolded himself internally.

"Right Potter." He said as he stood up straight and placed his hands behind his back again assuming the same position he'd held when Potter first arrived on the ward. He wanted to appear professional. This opportunity with Madame Pomfrey meant more to Draco than anyone realised and he was determined to do well.

"I'll prepare you a tonic to ease any tingling feelings or numbing sensations in your leg. Take off your robes and I'll get you something more comfortable." he said trying to inject some order back into proceedings. 

"Right. Thanks." Potter said quietly and Draco made his way to the cabinet across the ward to prepare the tonic. 

His head was spinning a little at the rush of emotions he had felt in the short time since Potter had arrived on the ward. He was used to Potter arousing strong emotions from him but he was still trying to work out how to cope with the changes between them since arriving back at school. 

He no longer felt animosity towards Potter. Once all the childish rivalry and jealousy was stripped away, Draco found he had a deep admiration for Potter. His bravery and loyalty were now something Draco could appreciate. He used to hate the attention everyone threw at Potter and felt he too was worthy of equal attention simply for being a Malfoy. He now realised Potter never sought out the attention and did not seem to enjoy his fame, which had increased since his extraordinary triumph over Voldemort. The events of the war had changed Draco irrevocably and when he remembered who he used to be, it was like remembering a different person, someone he had met a long time ago and vaguely recognised. The changes were not something Draco had consciously planned, it had just happened.

He finished the potion and made his way back to Potter's bed. He laughed at the sight that greeted him. Potter was attempting, rather unsuccessfully to take off his robes and was losing his balance without the support of both legs. His laughter died away however when Potter threw his robes to the foot of the bed and was sat shirtless, now looking at Draco who had walked to the side of Potter's bed without conscious movement. 

Potter was shirtless. 

As in he had no shirt on. 

Draco swallowed hard, trying hard not to look at Potter's naked torso, he handed him the goblet.

"Drink up Potter. It tastes foul but it'll help with any numbness or heaviness in your leg”. 

Potter downed the potion gallantly in a couple of gulps and Draco was distracted by Potter's Adam's apple as he swallowed. He quickly summoned a pair of pyjamas from across the ward and put them on the bed. He felt a swooping in his stomach as he realised he should help Potter to change. Any other patient and Malfoy would have performed his duties without hesitation but the thought of dressing, and undressing Harry Potter made his head spin. He was torn between being professional and running in the opposite direction. He also couldn’t ignore the (not so) small part of him that wanted to undress Potter…

Potter would probably want to do it himself anyway, Draco assured himself and not allowing himself to get carried away with his current train of thought.

“Erm, do you need help, getting them on? Or will you manage…” 

His voice sounded strange, as though it didn’t belong to him and he stopped his line of question when he caught a rather threatening look on Potter's face. Yep, he definitely didn't want Draco’s help. He was relieved and disappointed in equal measure as he turned to close the curtains, muttering to Potter as he left.

“Right, yeah of course, I'll just give you a moment.” 

Once he was safely the other side of the curtains Draco let out a long low breath. He was going to have to pull it together or else he was sure to make a fool of himself. Or worse, allow his feelings to spill out and Potter would know. Keeping his feelings contained had been easy up until that point as he had managed to avoid close proximity to Potter all term. However being thrown into a situation where contact was unavoidable was proving more difficult than Draco could imagine. He was about to walk away when he heard a struggle from behind the curtains where he could make out the sound of Potter panting. 

He was clearly struggling and without thinking Draco drew back the curtain. He caught Potter just as he was about to topple of the bed.

"Bloody hell" shouted Potter as he lost his balance, just as Draco got a hand to him to pull him back. 

"For Merlin's sake Potter, stop being so stubborn and pig-headed and let me help you before you break something else.” 

Draco was surprised at the authority in his own voice which was completely at odds to how he was feeling inside. He was afraid Potter would tell him to sod off, or worse, punch him. Potter didn’t argue however and allowed Draco to gently push him back to lay on the bed, looking down at the tangled mess of robes he'd deposited near his feet. 

Switching to autopilot Draco moved them to one side and began helping Potter into his pyjamas, plastering a look of what he hoped was utter indifference on to his face. Potter was surprisingly obliging and didn’t put up a fight. Once they had both legs inside their respective trouser legs Draco forced all of his concentration into getting Potter dressed so he could quickly run off and hide under a rock. 

He moved the trousers up towards Potter's waists and noticed a deep blush had spread all the way from Potter's face, down his neck and on to his chest. Momentarily distracted by the flushed sculptured torso in front of him, Draco looked up and caught those vivid green eyes once more. Even through his own nerves which were alight with being so close to Potter while he was such a state of undress, Draco noticed Potter too seemed to blushing and his breath was coming in short sharp takes. Of course Potter would be blushing Draco told himself - he is being helped to dress by his former rival.

Still they never broke their gaze and Draco felt Potter shift and raise his bum of the bed as the trousers slipped up and on to his waist. Draco had his hands either side of Potter's hips now and felt like a hot poker had been plunged into his stomach. He couldn’t have torn his gaze away from Potter for all the gold in Gringotts. 

He was transfixed, paralysed by the deep, penetrating green in front of him.   
Potter sat up suddenly and Draco’s breath caught in his chest. He thought for one wild moment Potter was moving to embrace or kiss him as if he had read Draco’s thoughts and was granting the wishes that Draco felt were so loud he was sure to have heard them. He stumbled back as he realised Potter had merely moved to put his pyjama top on. 

Feeling foolish for his brief lapse in reality he regained control of his senses.

“You can manage with the t-shirt?” he asked.

Potter simply nodded and disappeared into the depths of his pyjama top. Draco used these brief few seconds gather himself - which seemed to be easier done when not looking directly at Potter, or those eyes. He quickly gathered up Potter's dirty Quidditch robes, berating himself for wanting to bring them to his face and breathe in their scent.

“I'll be over at the desk if you need anything Potter. Just give me shout.” Draco managed to say before turning and walking away.

“Maybe I could get Blaise to obliviate this whole experience once Potter is better.” he thought glumly.


	5. Chapter Five

As he lay staring up at the ceiling which was by now an all too familiar sight, Harry sighed loudly. He was beyond bored and his feelings of frustration at not being able to finish the Quidditch game had rushed back to him as he lay with nothing else to think about. It had been almost four hours since he had scrambled into his bed clothes with the help of Malfoy and neither of them had spoken a word to the other since.

Harry was still slightly unerved from when Malfoy had touched him earlier. They had never had any physical interaction the whole time they had known one another, so it was quite a shock to find Malfoy so close in to Harrys personal space. He still cringed as he pictured how utterly pathetic he must have looked for Malfoy to actually help him get dressed. He had felt strangely vulnerable in his half naked state and his chest was still slightly flushed from the whole encounter.

He had felt light headed and dizzy and told himself if was the effects of falling from a great height, and whatever was in that potion Malfoy had given all causing Harry to feel odd. 

McGonagall had called in to check on him briefly and explained that she had spoken to Madame Pomfrey via the Floo and she was sorry she wasn't there. As it was Harry she promised to cut her trip short and would be back the following afternoon. McGonagall assured Harry that Pomfrey’s sister was doing much better and wouldn't miss her. 

With that McGonagall turned and hurried out of the ward, pausing on her way out to speak in a low voice to Malfoy. Harry couldn't make out what she said but he guessed it was a warning for them not to start fighting.

Since then Harry had lay in silence contemplating hexing his own leg off for something to do while Malfoy had busied himself over at the matron's desk in the far corner. Every now and again Harry would glance over to where Malfoy was sat and every single time, he would catch Malfoy looking at him. He would look quickly away upon discovery and carrying on with his notes or whatever the hell he was doing.  
Harry thought Malfoy must have been waiting for him to start winging or demanding attention to his leg, but Harry was happy to sit in his own peace and quiet for once. Solitude was so much harder to come by these days with everyone seeking out "The Chosen One" at any given time and even now months later, people loved to relive the final battle and Harry's extraordinary triumph over Voldemort. 

Harry on the other hand was sick of talking about it. Sick of thinking about it. Voldemort had consumed so much of his life already he now wanted nothing more than to try and live a normal life. Well, as normal is possible when you're Harry Potter.   
His much sought after solitude however was now wearing thin. He was starving and hated being restricted to his bed. He sighed again wishing he was outside, on his broom where he felt free and his worries and frustrations slipped away from him while he glided through the air letting the wind take all thoughts of war, battles, and Dark Lords with it.

“Are you okay?” he looked up as Malfoy approached his bed glancing at his watch as he walked. "You're due to take more potions soon if your leg is bothering you?" 

He looked up at Harry and smiled tentatively. Harry suddenly realised he'd never actually seen Malfoy smile before. Not properly. He looked at the face that was so familiar to Harry after all this time and noticed the subtle differences the change in expression made. His eyes looked more open and kind and his face seemed softer. It suited him much more that the sneer Harry had become so accustom to.

"No, my legs fine. I'm just bored. And starving." Harry explained. 

He found it strange to be sat here, with Malfoy, making normal everyday small talk. Of course Malfoy was just carrying out his duties as Trainee Healer. There were probably a million places he would rather be right now than stuck here looking after him.

"One of the House Elves will be up shortly with a tray for you. Do you want me to get you something to read?" Malfoy asked. 

He was stood right next to Harry's bed now and hand his hands in pockets. He wasn’t bouncing on the balls of his feet anymore, Harry noticed.

"No I'm fine." said Harry. "Thanks though." 

He looked at Malfoy and had the sudden urge to ask him to sit down. He was making him nervous standing over him like that.

"Okay, well I'll get you your next dose. You'll need to take it before you eat. How's your leg feeling? Is it hot or tingling?" 

He reached down to press his palms to Harry's leg. Harry froze and was rendered immobile as Malfoy's hands gently pressed up his calf across his knee and up on to his thigh. A cold shiver ran up Harrys leg and erupted near his hip. He swallowed thickly before looking up at Malfoy who was peering down at Harry's leg with a blank expression. He looked up at Harry and smiled again and said

"It seems fine?"

It was a question - Harry gathered his scattered thoughts and answered with a simple "yes". He felt a niggle, like something burrowing trying to get up to the surface of his mind but he ignored it and took a deep breath. His leg felt weird again. Harry assumed it was the effects of the potion wearing off again.

Malfoy turned and walked over to the cabinet where he had prepared the potion for Harry earlier. He returned quicker this time and Harry guessed he had prepared this dose in advance earlier. He drank the steaming liquid in two big gulps as he had done previous and passed the empty goblet to Malfoy's out stretched hand.   
"Does it taste as bad as it smells?" Malfoy asked, with a grimace indicating he sympathised with Harry.

"Worse." Harry answered and grinned as Malfoy wrinkled his nose in disdain. This was another look he never before seen on this familiar face and again Harry was surprised to find he enjoyed Malfoy when he wasn't sneering or snarling.

"Rather you than me Potter." said Malfoy and Harry noted that there was no bitterness in the deflection of his voice. He was still smiling.

Harry found himself looking for something to say to keep Malfoy at his side to keep on talking. He found he was bored of the peace and quiet he so often sought and wanted a bit of company. And he was pretty certain Malfoy wouldn't be requesting to hear stories of Harry the Hero from the war.

"So, how long have you been working with Madame Pomfrey then?" he asked, with no idea whether Malfoy would want to talk to him. He half expected him to snap back telling him to mind his own business. To Harry's surprise and relief, Malfoy answered him without a hint of sarcasm or mockery.

"Since the beginning of term really. I wasn’t sure she would have me, but she agreed to let me shadow her and help out where I could. I figured she'd just have me cleaning out chamber pots and changing sheets but she's really let me get involved and I've learnt so much." 

He looked up at Harry who was now sat up, leaning closer to Malfoy. He didn’t even remember moving. He was astonished at the change in the way Malfoy spoke. He seemed genuine when he spoke of his gratitude to Madame Pomfrey and he suddenly seemed so much younger to Harry. An innocence he had never seen before when looking into the pale face was suddenly startling.

"Do you enjoy it?" asked Harry, keen to keep the conversation going now, although not entirely sure why. Boredom he answered himself.

"Yes, I do" answered Draco and he took a step closer to Harry's bed and leaned against the tray that was on wheels over the bed and crossed his arms. He looked casual and relaxed, such a stark contrast to the boy who used to roam the halls, his head held high with a self-important stride.

"I want to do some good when we leave school. Healing seemed like the best option. Helping people, putting them back together, it feels like some small way of paying back for everything I broke, everything I did." 

He was staring down at hands as he spoke and Harry was astonished at the honesty Malfoy was displaying. He waited for Malfoy to look up at him and when he did, he offered him a small smile. He wanted to tell him that he had paid his debts by helping put so many Death Eaters in Azkaban, and for not giving Harry, Ron, and Hermione up to Bellatrix that day in Malfoy Manor but the words wouldn't form in his mouth. The smile was the best he could do and he hoped Malfoy picked up the message he was trying to convey.

"What about you?" Malfoy asked suddenly. He looked at Harry with a burning gaze that once again set Harry's nerves alight. He reasoned with himself that this sudden turn in the way they communicated with each other was a shock. He wasn't used to a calm, amenable and even pleasant Malfoy. He shrugged in answer to Malfoy's question, unsure of what he meant.

"What about me?" 

Malfoy continued to gaze at him and he swallowed thickly before asking   
"What do you want to do? Once we finish school?"

Harry had given much thought to this since doing their OWLS in 5th year. He had never lost his desire to become an Auror. But he wanted to earn it, not be handed a position because he was the one who got rid of Voldemort.

"I'm hoping to become an Auror." he told Malfoy who smiled gently and nodded his head in agreement. 

He obviously thought along the same lines as everyone else - of course Harry Potter can become an Auror he's already fought the most evil wizard ever to walk to face of the earth. But Harry still felt he needed to prove himself and his frustration that nobody seemed to understand this spilled out. 

"I don’t want to just be handed a position though because people see me as the Chosen One or The Boy Who Lived or whatever. I want to earn it, to deserve it. I want to know I am working as an Auror because I am as good as the guy working next to me and not just because I'm - me." 

He was breathing a little faster now and he looked up at Malfoy expecting him to laugh or make some kind of snide comment. Instead he was met with a pair of understanding, molten silver eyes that seemed to look straight into Harry. Malfoy bit his lower lip slowly as if working to carefully word what he was about to say. 

"You've already proven yourself Potter. Again, and again and again. You'll make an excellent Auror." He said the last part as though it were fact, not opinion. 

Harry looked back into those metallic eyes and was embarrassed to receive the compliment but thrilled none the less.  
At that moment the door burst open and a House Elf came scuttling into the ward carrying a tray of food. Harry took the tray and was pleased to see steak and kidney pie with treacle tart for afterwards - his favourite. There was also some lamb chops, roast chicken and veg and a huge pile of chips. It was as if the elf had brought a bit of everything, unsure what Harry would like. 

He thanked the elf and grabbed his knife and fork ready to eat. Malfoy made to move away but Harry looked up quickly and before he could help himself he said   
"Sit down. There's plenty here and you haven’t eaten all afternoon either." 

He held his arm out indicating that Malfoy should resume his previous seat. Malfoy stood looking at Harry's hand for a few seconds before slowly sitting on the bed and picking up a chip. 

"Thank you." he said quietly.

If someone had told Harry that morning he would end his day sat in bed eating dinner with Draco Malfoy he would have laughed in their face. Now however, he found himself smiling as he tucked in to his steak and kidney pie.


	6. Chapter Six

As they sat and ate in relaxed quiet Draco's mind was buzzing. Here he was, sat on a bed with Harry Potter as though they were old friends. This was what he had wanted all along, but jealousy, bitterness and his own misguided need to feel worthy had warped his feelings towards Potter over the years. 

He couldn't lie to himself anymore, he wanted to be Potter's friend. He had wanted this since they met as 11 year old boys. He also couldn't lie to himself that these feelings had developed and he wanted so much more than friendship from Potter. He knew this was impossible, and sitting crossed legged at the end of his bed sharing his chips was enough. More than enough.

Once he finished eating Potter sat back and stretched, his arms raised above his head, arching his back. His t-shirt lifted with the motion and Draco’s eyes flitted to Potter's midriff and the little line of hair, running from his bellybutton down into his pyjama pants... 

He quickly dragged his eyes away and jumped up to clear the plates. He had to get a hold of himself. He shouldn't even be here, his shift ended hours ago but he knew he wouldn't leave while Potter was still here. He placed his wand down on the bed as he piled the plates on to the tray and felt the same familiar swoop in his stomach as he thought of Potter, using his wand. It felt like a link, a bond between the two of them.

When he received the small box he was overcome with strange emotions. He wasn't surprised that Potter had returned it - it was so Gryffindor of him to return the wand to its rightful owner. He wanted to write a letter to express his gratitude, his regrets at his actions during and prior to the war, to tell Potter how he was glad he defeated Voldemort and lived, again, against all odds. But the words wouldn't form; he could not transfer the emotions through his quill, on to the parchment. He opted in the end for a simply Thank you. How could he ever put in to words what he wanted to say to Potter?

He was shaken from his deep thoughts by Potter's voice, as he asked suddenly,  
"What time are you meant to be here until?"

He knew his face was betraying him now, his attempt at nonchalance useless with the blush that was working its way across his cheeks. He'd have to admit he'd stayed late, chose Potter's company over going back to the dorms or the common room.  
"Well, my official shift was due to finish at 4pm but when there's a patient on the ward it's kind of a 24 hour thing." 

He hoped he sounded convincing. It was partly true. Once a patient was admitted he was on call but usual practice was to give the patient a bell that when rung would alert him from his chambers across the ward. He definitely didn't need to be sitting on Potter's bed sharing his dinner.

"You don't have to stay on my account." said Potter, looking like pride had been wounded "I'll be fine, I'm sure there's 100 places you'd rather be than stuck here with me."

"No." Draco thought to himself. "There is nowhere in the world I'd rather be right now than right where I am."

"No, I'm in no rush don’t worry." He said out loud, trying to sound off hand and casual. 

"I'll need to be on hand anyway in case you need anything. You can’t get up on your own." 

He smirked at Potter, gently taunting him as he sensed his pride was aching at feeling unguarded and weakened.

"I'd rather be here anyway than in the common room, you’re much better company" he added without really thinking.

The words were out of his mouth before he'd even thought them. Being this close to Potter was having a catastrophic effect on Draco’s control of his senses – and his mouth. He was still trying to catch up on the fact they’d spent an entire afternoon in each other’s company and the world hadn’t ended. Shit. Reign it in Draco he chastised himself internally.

He heard Potter laugh lightly as he said   
"Who would have believed it eh? Potter and Malfoy getting along and the world hasn’t ended." Potter laughed speaking Draco’s thoughts and he looked up at Draco with an enticing smile.

Draco couldn't help smiling back, he felt he might burst. His stomach churned as butterflies began to dance again his bones vibrated as he took in Potter's words. "Getting along." That was one step away from friends in Draco’s book.

"Yeah, who'd have guessed?" He offered back, laughing nervously and praying his jubilation wasn't written all over his face.  
He placed the tray with the empty plates on the next bed and right on queue a house elf came scuttling into the room and quickly disposed of the tray, bowing wildly as he backed out of the room.

"I hate it when the bow." He heard himself say suddenly as he watched the little elf close the door behind him.

"Why?" asked Potter and Draco looked up to see Potter looking at him with a frown, curiosity seeping from his eyes. 

Those eyes. 

Draco had never seen anything so vivid, so beautiful, and so distracting. He tore his gaze away and in the midst of his scattered thoughts answered Potter's question honestly and rather stupidly.

"It just reminds me of the manor, and everyone bowing to him -" 

His voice broke off and he turned suddenly and looked again at Potter. He feared what he may do at mention of The Dark Lord, how Potter would react to the reminder that Draco was a Death Eater, had acted on Voldemort’s orders. He tentatively raised his eyes and once again found two emeralds shining at him under a mop of messy black hair. 

Potter leaned up towards Draco from where he was sat on the bed, closing the gap between them. Draco wanted to step closer, close the gap even more but he was scared he had broken the magic that seemed to be swirling between him and Potter all night. 

Potter held his gaze and took a deep breath.

"I saw what he put you through you know, how you suffered, a prisoner in your own home. I used to be able to see what he saw, felt what he felt, when he was experiencing strong emotions. I saw you, in Malfoy Manor. You looks so, scared. So young."

Whatever Draco had expected Potter to say it wasn't this. He had shared emotions with the Dark Lord? Draco daren't even imagine how horrific that must have been. He wondered wildly what exactly Potter had seen. He had been through so much while trapped inside the manor, witnessed things he tried hard not to think of.

Knowing Potter had seen, been there with him in some small, strange way, comforted Draco and he felt a lump rise in his throat. The bones in his legs seemed to melt and he sank on to the bed, working hard to remember how to form words he said...

"You saw into his mind? Felt his emotions? I'd heard them talk of a possible link but I never..."

He looked down at his hands and swallowed hard. After taking a deep breath he looked back up at Potter who was sat up, still leaning towards him. He had a blazing look in his eyes as he spoke.

"We both experienced different sides of the war Malfoy. Both as hard and brutal and each other. We could hold grudges, hate each other, but what's the point? I've spent so much of my life fighting. I just want it all to stop. To just, move on, start again - be at peace."

It was right then that Draco felt it, the wall between them crashing down into rubble and ruins at his feet. The magic he had been feeling all evening was still there.   
Start again. Yes, he could do that. He wanted to do that. To lay to rest all that had passed between them both and move on. He was being given a second chance. His chest suddenly felt lighter, as if he had been holding his breath all this time, waiting for Potter to forgive, to forget. He held out his hand to Potter and smiled as his heart fluttered frantically.

"Start again." He said simply, holding out his hand.

"I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."

His heart constricted when Potter smiled back, took Draco’s hand in his and shook it gently, sending jolts up Draco’s arm directly to his heart.

"I'm Harry Potter. Nice to meet you, Malfoy."


	7. Chapter Seven

Harry lay in bed later that night contemplating the events from earlier in the evening. It felt so much had happened in such a short space of time. Following their handshake, Malfoy had made his way back over to the Matron's desk and carried on with his paperwork. After about an hour or so he had come to the foot of Harry's bed and told him he would be in the chamber next door and to ring the bell on the bedside cabinet if he needed anything. Harry smiled and watched as the tall blonde figure disappeared into a door directly opposite his bed. That was about three hours ago and Harry had lay there, in silence, staring up at the ceiling ever since.

He wouldn't go as far as to say he and Malfoy were now friends but there was no denying he felt so much better letting go off all the resentment and animosity. He laughed gently to himself and he remembered their handshake and the look on Malfoy's face as he offered Harry his hand. The reference to their first official meeting back on the Hogwarts Express was not lost on Harry. The gesture was exactly the same, but the boy offering his hand had changed beyond measure. Could people truly change so drastically? Or was he finally now seeing the real Malfoy? Had the arrogant prat who tormented Harry for six years been his real mask, conforming to how he felt he was expected to behave as the son of a Death Eater?

It had felt strange, talking so openly and laying his emotions out so bare to Malfoy of all people. But he felt like it needed to be said. It was as If all the animosity they used to have for each other was weighing him down. He hadn’t realized it until that very moment after dinner, but clearing the air with Malfoy, laying their past to rest, had made Harry feel lighter already. 

He had realized suddenly, looking into those deep grey eyes, why it was so easy all of a sudden to forgive Malfoy. He had followed his parents out of blind love and loyalty and was forced to encounter fear and repression at the hands of people he had trusted.

All this thinking was making Harry's head swim. He sat up as best he could and looked out the window. He could see the moon reflecting in the black lake and the stars reflections were dancing on the water as the night's breeze rippled across its surface. 

He glanced over the door opposite and wondered if Malfoy was still awake. Could he see the same view from his bed? 

A creak startled Harry out of his reverie and he looked over to see the door to Malfoy's chamber slowly opening, a small warm glow flooded into the ward from the candle Malfoy was holding in his hand. He looked across to Harry and stood up straighter as he realised his patient was still awake. Malfoy was dressed in black cotton lounge pants and a plain white t-shirt, similar to what Harry himself was wearing. Harry grinned; he had always imagined Malfoy in some ridiculous green satin pyjamas with his initials embroidered on to the breast pocket. He looked the most relaxed Harry had ever seen him, his hair ruffled and not in its usual slick neat style. It suited him. As Malfoy approached the bed he smiled sleepily at Harry.

"Trouble sleeping? Is it your leg?" he asked as he approached the side of the bed and placed the candle on the cabinet beside Harry's wand, watch and jug of water.

"No, my leg is fine.” Harry answered, suddenly wondering if Malfoy would examine his leg again and feeling his leg tremble slightly in response.

“I was just, you know, thinking...” he added lamely. He didn’t want to tell Malfoy he'd lay for the past three hours consumed by thoughts of him. 

Malfoy sat on the edge of the bed and looked at Harry, his eyes narrowed slightly. He held Harry's gaze for a moment and looked as though he were about to say something. He chewed on his bottom lip and Harry was distracted, watching his teeth sink into the pink, fleshy cushion. He looked back up at Malfoy.

"Why are you still awake? You having trouble sleeping too?" 

He leaned back against his pillows again, feeling relaxed. He was glad Malfoy was awake, glad of the company again.

"Yeah, I tried reading for a bit but that didn’t work so I thought I'd come and check on you." He answered with a small smile. 

Harry felt a strange swoop in his stomach from out of nowhere. Recovering quickly he tried to cover it up by rambling on…

"I usually sleep great, even with Ron’s relentless snoring and Seamus talking in his sleep." he explained, "Maybe it's too quiet in here and I'm not used to it." he finished, laughing nervously. He knew he was prattling now. Malfoy must be wishing he'd stayed in bed.

"Fancy a hot drink?" Malfoy asked him suddenly waving his wand and two steaming mugs appeared on the tray over the end of Harry's bed. He picked them up and passed one of them over to Harry. It was hot chocolate, complete with whipped cream and mini marshmallows.

"Cheers." Harry said thankfully, glad that Malfoy seemed too keen to stay out with Harry for a little longer. 

"I've never been any good at food charms, Ginny can do a brilliant treacle tart, his Mother taught her. But I'm useless." Harry laughed. 

He took a sip and the hot chocolate seemed to warm him from the inside out. He looked up at Malfoy who was frowning slightly. He smiled when Harry looked at him and took a sip of his drink.

"You and the girl Weasley still going strong then." he asked. 

He sounded restricted, as though he was clenching his jaw. Harry guessed he was just being polite in asking and wasn't really interested at all in his love life - or lack thereof.

"Me and Ginny?” he asked, “No. No, we never really got back on track after the battle and the hearings and everything afterwards. It was all so mental for a while and then once things settled down, it just wasn't the same. We weren't the same. She's still great, don’t get me wrong, but we're just good friends now." 

He took another sip of his hot chocolate and watched as Malfoy curled his legs up off the floor, pulling them on to the bed and tucking them under himself. He seemed to relax a little once he knew Harry wasn’t about to bore him with his love live – or lack thereof!

"Sorry, I wouldn't have mentioned it if I'd have known." 

He gave Harry what he guessed was supposed to be a sympathetic smile, apparently under the impression Harry was upset with the breakup. 

"Don’t worry," Harry laughed, "I'm fine, we're both fine. I'm pretty useless with the whole dating and girls thing to be honest she's probably better off without me. My record is pretty pathetic."

Malfoy laughed suddenly and moved, crossing his legs in front of him and leaning forwards with his elbows resting on his knees and both hands wrapped around his mug of hot chocolate.

"I know the feeling. I'm useless with all that crap as well. I've been trying to avoid Pansy's advances for almost ten years, ever since we were children. She's relentless. She refuses to give up and my insistent protests that she is 100% not my type seem to fall on deaf ears."

Harry grinned at the thought of Pansy Pug Face buzzing around Malfoy like an annoying fly with him swatting her away. He took another gulp of his hot chocolate to drain the last delicious drops when Malfoy continued.

"She is certain that me being gay is just a phase and I'll grow out of it."

Harry suddenly choked on his drink and spat half of it down the front of his t-shirt, spluttering wildly. He coughed and attempted to regain control of himself, now embarrassed at his reaction.

Malfoy was gay. Since when? How did he not know this? Was it some big secret? Apparently not given the casual nature in which Malfoy was sat here discussing it.

"Bloody hell Potter." Malfoy shrieked. Harry looked up and was mortified to see he'd also sprayed the front of Malfoy's white t-shirt with hot chocolate.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry.. I just - I didn’t realise - I mean I never knew. Gay? Right then." Harry managed to stutter.

He nodded his head as if to convey his acceptance and indifference realising at the same time his recent outburst contradicted him completely. He didn’t have a problem with Malfoy being gay, it was just a shock.

"I thought everyone knew." Malfoy said as he wiped the front of his t-shirt,   
"Pansy isn’t exactly quiet and most of the people in our dorms know. I figured word would spread and everyone knew, they just didn’t care." 

He wasn’t looking at Harry and this was making him feel extremely guilty. He gathered himself together and cleared his throat which was a bit sore from his choking fit.

"I'm sorry. I had no idea, word obviously hasn’t spread as far as the Gryffindor tower yet. It was just a shock, I didn’t mean to spit all over you." 

He felt his face flush and felt like a complete idiot. Malfoy still wasn’t looking at him. Harry nudged Malfoy's leg with his good foot and when he finally looked up, his eyes where once again wide, the silver specs glistening in the soft glow of the candle light. Harry was again taken aback by the innocence and softness of the eyes he had once found so cold and hard. He smiled at Malfoy and nudged him again.

"You couldn't make me another drink could you, I spilled most of this one?"

Malfoy laughed, waved his wand and Harry's cup was once again full of steaming hot chocolate.

Deciding to carry on as if his recent embarrassing eruption of hot chocolate hadn't happened Harry attempted casual conversation.

"So, you been following the Quidditch lately? Puddlemere top of the league? I wish I'd have taken Ron’s tip now and had a bet with Seamus." Harry laughed, settling back down against his pillows. He glanced up cautiously at Malfoy and was relieved when he seemed to relax, as though he had been holding his breath. 

Smiling, Malfoy and resumed his previous position, elbows on knees, hands wrapped around his cup and laughed,

"Well, Weasley has to be right occasionally I suppose."


	8. Chapter 8

"Tea or coffee?"

"Tea, obviously" Draco replied. He hated coffee. Although he loved the smell.

"Me too." agreed Potter. Draco smiled.  
"Sweet or savoury?" He asked, enjoying this pointless game immensely, loving every little thing he learnt about Potter in each answer.

"Sweet." 

"I prefer savoury."

"Winter or summer?" Potter asked

Thinking of Christmas and being spoilt as a child Draco answered,

"Winter, I love Christmas."

"Mmm" Potter murmured. It occurred to Draco that Potter probably had very different   
Christmases to him with his Muggle relations.

He was in a slight state of euphoria, lying top and tail with Potter, talking about absolute nonsense which actually meant more to Draco than anything had in a while. He loved now knowing that Potter preferred dogs to cats, chocolate ice cream to vanilla and listening to music rather than reading. All these nothings meant more to Draco than so many something’s.

"Kissing or hugging" he suddenly asked boldly. His mind had taken a route down a secluded corridor where he and Potter were tangled in a hot, frantic embrace and the question fell from his lips before consideration. He stared up at the ceiling waiting for Potter's answer.

"Erm depends on who I'm meant to be kissing or hugging to be honest."   
Potter laughed. Draco’s stomach tightened. The thought of Potter kissing anyone made his inside freeze and he suddenly realised his question may lead to Potter regaling tales of passion with girl Weasley. Why had he even asked?  
"Hugs probably." Potter eventually concluded.

Draco felt a thrill run through him and before he could stop himself he heard himself say,"You've obviously never had a great kiss then Potter." 

He saw Potter's head snap up off his pillow and look down the bed at him and he determinedly kept his eyes pinned to the ceiling above him. 

Was he flirting with Harry Potter? 

"I have." Potter said rather loudly sounding defensive. Draco laughed and held his hands up mockingly,

"Ok, ok sorry. But still –“

He couldn't stop himself.

"If you prefer hugs to kisses whoever’s been kissing you hasn’t been doing it right." 

Where this sudden sassy attitude was coming from Draco had no idea. He sounded much more confident than he felt. He was glad to see he was having some effect on Potter as he didn’t seem to hear him at first when he asked,

"Mornings or Nights?"

"What? Oh, erm, nights. I hate getting up in the morning." Potter mumbled.

He sounded distracted, and Draco hoped he was considering how awful his experiences with girls were and what a nightmare navigating the female body was with all their wobbly bits was and promptly deciding it would be better all-round if he was gay and asking Draco if would like to show him what a great kiss was. Deciding this was unlikely he nudged Potter with his foot,

"Your turn Potter."

He looked up the bed to see Potter's brow was furrowed and he looked deep in thought.

"What?" he looked up and caught Draco’s gaze and Draco was again blown away by how beautiful his eyes were. He caught his breath and responded,

"Your turn to ask a question."

"Oh right. Tea or coffee?"

"We've already had that one?"

"Oh yeah"

Something was certainly bothering him. One mention of kissing and Potter seemed to have lost his concentration. Draco hoped he wasn’t reminiscing about kissing girl Weasley. What if he was remembering how great they were as a couple and wishing they were back together. He'd certainly touched a sensitive subject. He propped himself up on his elbows and looked at Potter.

"Have I hit a nerve Potter?" he asked him, nervously. 

He wasn’t sure he wanted the answer if it involved plans to win back Ginny.

"No." Harry answered slowly, "Just got me thinking, that's all."

"About what?" Draco asked in spite of himself, bracing himself for a conversation about Potter's feelings for his ex. He felt like he may vomit.

"Well, having only kissed two girls, one of whom was crying most of the time, I don’t really have a great wealth of experience to draw upon. Maybe you’re right; maybe I haven’t had a great kiss yet."  
I could change that thought Draco to himself. He was again overcome with a reckless urge to jump up, grab Potter and show him exactly what a great kiss was like. Not that he'd ever had one himself, but he imagined with Potter it would be beyond great. Earth-shattering even.

"Well, you've got something to look forward to then, haven’t you." he said instead, instantly hating whoever it was that gave Potter this kiss. Potter looked up at him with that bone melting smile and he couldn’t help but smile back.

"Yeah. Suppose." Potter laid his head back on his pillows and Draco followed suit, placing his hands behind his head again.

"What about you, have you ever had a great kiss?" he heard Potter ask suddenly.

"Not really." he answered honestly. 

"My first kiss was with Daphne Greengrass in third year. It was okay but I was already questioning my sexuality and wasn't really into it 100%" he remembered thinking it was nice, but having no desire to repeat the experience with her any time afterwards.

He remembered feeling her breasts pushing up against his chest and feeling a bit queasy. They were weird things, he thought, girls boobs. He'd have no idea what to do if ever presented with a pair. They made him laugh more than anything, this being one of the first signs that he might not like girls in the way he should.

"Is she the only person you've ever kissed?" Potter asked slowly.

"Yeah."

"So how do you know you're gay if you've never kissed a boy?" Potter suddenly blurted out. 

Draco had to stop himself from bursting into laughter and instead chuckled. As if it was that simple.

"Well I know I don’t like kissing girls, or looking at them. And I find boys attractive. So adding all that up pretty much equates to being gay." he explained to an utterly bewildered Potter. 

"Plus I am completely infatuated with you." he added to himself.

"Right, yeah." He heard Potter murmur from the other end of the bed.

They lay quietly for a while, Draco mulling things over. Potter had never really enjoyed a kiss with a girl, a thought which made Draco smile although it didn’t really matter. Draco was sure Potter would eventually meet the perfect girl, fall madly in love and have perfect kids and be perfectly happy. The thought made Draco want to cry. He knew Potter could have any girl he wanted, everyone in school was practically in love with him. A fact which seemed to go unnoticed by Potter himself.   
But he'd soon realise his own attraction and one lucky girl from his hordes of admirers would catch his attention. 

He peered down the bed to see Potter's eyes drifting shut. Draco took advantage of the opportunity to stare, unashamedly at his face. He really was beautiful, Draco thought. His skin was slightly tanned, probably from all the flying in Quidditch practice and completely flawless. Not a blemish insight. He had a few freckles on the bridge of his nose and across his cheeks. His eyelashes were shockingly long and fanned out across his lower lid as his eyes fluttered as he was drifting off into slumber. Draco watched as his mouth opened slightly and his breathing slowed. His lips were pink and slightly wet and Draco felt a tightening in the pit of his stomach, imagining Potter's lips in a variety of scenarios, each as pleasant as the next.

It had been only hours ago that Draco had been sat on the window sill, watching the game, watching Potter, from afar. And now here he was, lying next to him as they slept. So much had happened since Potter's arrival to the Hospital Wing it seemed impossible to Draco that the world outside was still turning as if nothing extraordinary had occurred. He marveled at how one person could have such an effect on his small world.

"You know Malfoy,” Potter suddenly whispered, sleepily, "You’ve probably got the right idea being gay. Girls are an absolute mystery anyway."

Draco looked at the boy opposite him, who never did what he expected him to do, never said what he expected him to say, or acted the way he expected he would act.

"So are some boys." he whispered quietly, but he wasn’t sure Potter had even heard him. He seemed to have finally succumbed to sleep.

"Goodnight Harry." Draco whispered, before closing his eyes, and letting his dreams take him.


	9. Chapter Nine

It took a few seconds for Harry to remember where he was. He was chilly, having fallen asleep on top of the covers and it was still slightly dark outside but light was threatening through the clouds. He guessed it was just before dawn.   
He glanced down the bed and Malfoy was fast asleep, lying on his side, curled up with his hands under his chin. If someone had told him the previous morning he would be waking up in bed with Draco Malfoy he'd have bet all the gold in Gringotts that they were wrong. But here he was, waking up beside him, and it didn’t feel odd at all?

Malfoy looked so peaceful Harry didn’t want to disturb him. He looked down at the pale, thin face. Malfoy had his own fair share of female admirers other than Pansy and he realised now, without the scowling and sneering for the first time how handsome Malfoy was. His skin was milky white, so pale his lips seemed even redder against his snowy complexion. Harry noted his top lip was slightly fuller than his bottom lip and Malfoy was pouting slightly in his sleep. An innocence Harry hadn’t ever noticed before – or perhaps it was never there before – was prevalent as he watched Malfoy's deep rhythmic breathing, his eyes fluttering as he dreamt.

Realising suddenly he was watching Malfoy sleep he shook his head, glad there wasn't anyone around. He smiled to himself as stretched, waking his sleepy bones and muscles. He was in such a good mood and he had a strange, fluttering feeling in his stomach which he usually got before a big Quidditch game. He couldn’t quite place why he had butterflies in his stomach this morning – perhaps it was his leg?   
His bad leg felt heavy and he attempted to sit up feeling a bit stuff. As he moved he disturbed Malfoy who slowly opened his eyes and looked around, his eyes landing on Harry looking utterly bewildered for a moment before sitting up quickly,

"Shit. Potter, you should have woke me. What time is it?" 

He looked frantically at his watch before jumping off the bed as if a stinging hex had hit him right on his arse.  
"I've only just woke up myself." Harry explained, feeling slightly amused at Malfoy's panic stricken expression. He decided not to mention he’d been awake for a few minutes and had actually watched Malfoy sleep. That sounded creepier than it actually was.

"It’s a good job Madame Pomfrey didn’t come back and find me napping on a patient's bed." 

Malfoy shrieked, sounding slightly hysterical and running his hands through his hair. He was looking around as if Madame Pomfrey was to jump out from under a bed at any moment.

"Calm down Malfoy, for merlin’s sake. Nobody’s here, you fell asleep, big deal." 

He laughed and Malfoy looked at him. His eyes caught Harry's and he surveyed him for a moment before taking a deep breath, as if to calm himself.  
"Yeah, okay, yeah you're right. I'm sorry, for falling asleep I must have just drifted off." 

He displayed a spectacular blush and was brushing down his t-shirt, trying to iron the creases out and regain some of his professionalism.

“Don’t worry about it.” Harry laughed. “I was glad of the company. I’ve spent enough long nights alone on this ward to last a life time. It’s enough to bore anyone to death.” 

He looked up at Malfoy who was running his hands through his hair again, stood at the foot of his bed. His shoulders relaxed slightly and he smiled slowly.

“All the same, I’d appreciate if we didn’t mention this to Madame Pomfrey?” 

Harry's noticed that Malfoy referred to them both as "we" and smiled. It should have sounded weird but it didn’t. 

“I promise.” Harry swore and made a cross across his chest with his finger.

“It will be our little secret.” 

As the words left his mouth, Harry felt his face burn. Malfoy too was blushing. 

Why did that sound weird? 

He didn’t mean it like anything had actually happened. They’d only fallen asleep together. On the same bed. The word secret implied they had something to hide.   
The butterflies in his stomach were crashing about.

“Thanks Potter.” Malfoy said quietly, and he was looking at Harry with a burning look, his eyes were molten silver. 

Harry suddenly had the feeling he was referring not just to Harry's discretion as to where Malfoy slept, but for the things that had passed between them throughout the night. It was hard to put in to words what had actually happened – but Harry knew it was significant. He knew things were going to be different from now on. And he was   
glad.

“No problem.” He replied with a small smile.

"I’d better go change, McGonagall will be up soon, Madame Pomfrey said she would be back early." Malfoy said, as he turned to the end of the bed.

He looked down at Harry for a moment before asking,

"Do you need anything?"

"Nope." Harry smirked, noting how Malfoy was trying to apply his professional persona. Harry preferred him like this, a bit messy with bed hair and crumpled night clothes.

"Right. I'll be back shortly." 

And he was off, disappearing into his chamber across the ward.

The sun was coming up now and the sky outside was turning red, throwing a stunning orange glow across the lake. Harry was disappointed that he would be stuck inside all day on what looked to be a perfect day for flying. He wondered whether Malfoy would be working again today. Surely not, he told himself. He had been there all day and night already. He would probably wait until Madame Pomfrey arrived then head off back to his dorm for a break. This made Harry feel a bit dejected. He wondered for a moment whether Malfoy would stick around if Harry asked him to. His pride flared up at that exact moment and he knew he would NEVER ask. As much as he would like his company.

His mind drifted to the previous night and the surprising route the conversation ended up taking. He blushed as he recalled his reaction to Malfoys gay bombshell. It was possibly one of the most embarrassing moments of his life – and that was saying something.

Although it wasn’t quite as embarrassing as his admission of just how awful he was with girls! Why he had felt the need to explain all of that to Malfoy was beyond him! He thought back to Malfoys comments about Harry never having a great kiss and although the thought bothered him, he couldn’t actually think of anyone he even wanted to share a kiss with at the moment. 

He wasn’t like the other boys in the dorms. They were constantly talking about the girls in school, who they fancied and who they’d kissed or fooled around with. But Harry just wasn’t interested. He couldn’t find it in him be excited as Ron and Seamus when Peeves dropped water balloons over a bunch of Ravenclaw girls making their shirts see through. 

Why he had felt the need to share of this with Malfoy however was a mystery. He blamed that potion again – it had made him feel weird all afternoon. 

He shifted and sat up, hearing his stomach rumbling. He picked his watch up off the bed stand - it was almost 8am. They'd be serving breakfast in the great hall now. Thinking hungrily of bacon and sausages on hot buttered bread Harry wondered if a house elf would bring him a tray up again as they had last night. Perhaps if he offered Malfoy some breakfast, he would stick around a little longer?  
At that moment the main door to the ward opened and Harry looked up hopefully expecting to see a tray bobbing along above a house elves head. Instead he saw Ron and Hermione striding towards him, smiling warmly.

"Morning Harry." Hermione said brightly. "How are you feeling?"

They reached the side of the bed and Harry noticed Ron was carrying a plate with toast and some sausages. He was immediately thankful that his best friend always thought with his stomach.

"Oh great are they for me?" He asked, looking down at the plate.

"Yeah, thought you might be hungry, tuck in mate."

Ron handed him the plate and they both sat on the end of the bed where Malfoy had been sleeping minutes before.

"So, how's the leg?" Ron asked as he watched Harry construct a sausage butty.

"Yeah fine." Harry answered before taking a huge bite of his sandwich. 

“McGonagall told us Madame Pomfrey is coming back early.” Hermione said as she tucked her feet up under herself sitting back against the end of the bed. Harry smiled to himself as he pictured Malfoy doing the same the night before.  
“Yeah, she’ll be here this morning at some point.” He answered, and as he did he felt a jolt in his stomach – a bit like disappointment. It must have shown in his voice because Hermione looked at him with a small frown,

“That’s good isn't it? You’ll be on the mend and out of the hospital by dinner time.”

“And away from Ferret. Where is he anyway?” Ron said, looking round the ward.  
Harry nodded towards the chamber across the hall as he took another bite of his sandwich,

“In the matron’s chamber,” he swallowed the large mouthful of breakfast and added “He was here all night. He has to be on call if there’s a patient.” 

He looked down at the plate and laughed to himself as he noticed Ron had brought enough to feed 6 grown men. He should offer Malfoy something to eat, he must be starving as well.

"Malfoy?" He shouted and Ron and Hermione jumped, startled. They followed Harry's eye line to the door as it opened and Malfoy came out, immaculately dressed in his healer robes again with his hair combed neatly. He stopped when he noticed Harry had guests and looked like he didn’t quite know what to do.

"Ron’s brought up some food if you want some breakfast?" Harry asked pointing at the plate on the tray over his bed. Malfoy looked at him for a moment then drew himself up, his chin tilting upwards slightly. He seemed tense and for some reason this made Harry shudder. 

"No, thank you Potter. I need to get to work and get your paperwork finished before Madame Pomfrey gets here. Let me know if you need anything.”

His tone was clipped and professional and he didn’t meet Harry eye when he spoke. Harry suddenly felt as though they'd been in a bubble all evening and it had popped violently. He felt a pang of something he couldn't identify and was interrupted before he could think any more on it by Hermione.

He caught Ron’s eye and noticed he was looking from Malfoy and back to Harry with a puzzled expression. Harry was about to ask him what was wrong when Hermione spoke again.

"We saw Professor McGonagall on our way up here just now. She was on her way back to her office to meet Madame Pomfrey. She was due to arrive in her fireplace." 

She smiled at Harry and picked up a piece of toast off his plate. As she ate, she too looked over at Malfoy and back to Harry before giving Ron a telling look – Harry had a feeling he had missed something but he felt too cold from Malfoy's rebuff to care.

"Right" Harry mumbled, he was distracted looking over at Malfoy who was now over at the desk doing his paperwork. His head was bowed low over his documents and he was tapping his foot under the desk. He hadn’t even acknowledged Ron or Hermione - Realising suddenly that this was standard practice Harry mentally slapped himself. He forgot Ron and Hermione knew nothing of the events of the previous night, of the walls he and Malfoy had dismantled, the past being laid to rest, new beginnings and hot chocolates - it seemed surreal to him that the outside world, beyond the bubble he and Malfoy had spent the night in, had carried on turning as usual. That must be why they looked so taken back when he offered Malfoy some breakfast.

Everyone's heads turned as the main doors opened again and this time McGonagall came bustling in to the ward with Madame Pomfrey at her heels.

"Oh Mr Potter. It's not even Christmas yet and here you are. Minus a few bones again I see?" Madame Pomfrey threw him an amused look as she made her way over a small cabinet next to the one Malfoy had prepared Harry's potion the previous night. She unlocked it and took out a familiar bottle of Skele-Gro before turning to Malfoy.

"Thank for you your efforts Mr Malfoy. I see you prepared Mr Potter a tonic to ease his leg temporarily, marvellous." She beamed at him. Harry's eyes darted over to the blonde, whose head was still low over his paperwork.

Malfoy nodded and smiled up at her before lowering his head again and turning his attention back to his forms. He hadn't looked at Harry once since he'd come back out of his chamber and it was starting to annoy him. He was acting as though Harry wasn’t even there. Harry accepted that he wasn’t likely to jump on the bed next to Ron and Hermione and start chatting like old friends but he could at least look at him.

"Right then Mr Potter, let's get this down your neck now and you should be good to go by dinner time." 

Madame Pomfrey made her way over to his bedside and poured him a vile of the clear liquid. Harry hadn't forgotten how disgusting it tasted and held his nose as he downed his first dose.

"I've brought your books so you can get your homework done." Hermione told him as she pulled his things out of her bag. She was smiling at him as thought this was meant to be good news.

“Cheers.” Harry mumbled. He felt utterly miserable. He’d woken up in such a good mood and it was disintegrating rapidly. Malfoy was giving him the cold shoulder, he was stuck inside all day on a Sunday and the only thing he would have to distract him is his potions homework. Brilliant.

"At least we can always count on Miss Granger to ensure your studies are not affected Mr Potter." McGonagall said, before glancing at the sandwich in Harry's hand. He wasn’t even hungry now.

"And Mr Weasley can always be relied on to remember ones stomach."   
Harry noticed she was smiling slightly. He placed the rest of his breakfast back on the plate. He had a knot in the pit of his stomach. What was wrong with him? Common sense told him Malfoy was bound to be a bit reserved in front of Ron and Hermione. He hadn’t spoken to them for months and he knew, as did Harry, that they were unaware of the newly formed friendship they had fell into (they were friends now Harry supposed?) 

But he couldn’t help feeling stung by being ignored.

"Well I can see you're well looked after. I'll be back this evening Potter to see you before you leave. I'll leave you to it Poppy" she nodded at Madame Pomfrey and made her way out of the ward, nodding to Malfoy as she passed.

Hermione began opening books, apparently first things first – homework. Ron had helped himself to one of the sausages on Harry's plate and was filling Harry in on what had happened after the match was stopped. Harry wasn’t listening properly, his attention instead was at the matron’s desk and the blonde head, bowed low over his paperwork so his face was out of view.

Malfoy stood suddenly from the desk, shuffling a pile of papers,

"All the relevant paperwork has been completed Madame Pomfrey." He explained,   
"Is there anything else you need from me?" he asked her, now standing next to the desk with his hands behind his back again and bouncing rapidly on the balls of his feet. 

Harry thought back to the relaxed, ruffled Malfoy who had sat on his bed the night before drinking hot chocolate and wished suddenly he was still here rather than this distant, offhand Malfoy who couldn’t even look at him. Harry felt a flash of panic run through him – was Malfoy suddenly regretting their truce, wishing he’d never breached the barriers and showed so much of himself to Harry?

"No, that’s wonderful Mr Malfoy thank you, you've done a great job. You go and enjoy the rest of your weekend dear." Madame Pomfrey replied as she made her way to the desk to relieve Malfoy of his duties.

Without another word Malfoy turned and left the ward, not even pausing to glance Harry's way, never mind to say goodbye. Harry felt cold all of a sudden and it was as if the magic that seemed to be in the air the night before was blown out the room with Malfoy as he shut the door behind him.


	10. Chapter Ten

"What's up with you?" Blaise asked as he walked around Draco's bed to his own 4 poster and sat down.

"Nothing." lied Draco, staring up at the ceiling of his emerald green hangings, which reminded him of bright emerald eyes...

"Well you've had a face like someone who's been told Christmas has been cancelled all morning. Has this got something to do with Potter?" he asked.

Draco's head snapped up off his pillow and looked over to see Blaise sat on the edge of his bed, fixing Draco with a penetrating stare. He never had to tell Blaise what was up, he could usually just tell.

"Why do you think it's something to do with Potter?" he asked and his voice shook.

"Because he was in the Hospital Wing all night and you didn’t come back to the dorms until after breakfast this morning so I'm assuming you were with him?" he explained. 

His expression was blank but Draco knew he had more of an idea of what was going on that he was letting on. He always did – somehow.

Draco sat up and looked at his friend. He was so unlike the other Slytherin’s. Blaise was quiet and pensive and didn’t mind talking about feelings or other tricky subjects. He'd been the first person Draco had talked to about being gay. He had told Draco it was no big deal, and it was better to just come out and have done with it and save a lot of energy running away from girls like Pansy. Blaise seemed to think that Draco was quite popular with the girls, something Draco himself couldn’t see and found funny yet embarrassing to consider. 

Blaise had a very pragmatic attitude and wasn't overly dramatic. He would always consider a problem and calmly offer a solution without judgement or criticism. Knowing his friend would be able to help Draco took a deep breath before answering.

"Yes, it's about Potter." he conceded. There was no point lying, Blaise would get it out of him eventually.

"Did you have a fight?"

"No. We made friends."

Draco explained, rather lamely. He felt this was a massive understatement of the previous night’s events but he was completely unsure how to put in to words what had actually happened. He was still astonished to find the world exactly how he had left it. He felt so irreversibly changed by the night he had spent with Potter he couldn’t fathom how the rest of the world had continued about its normal business. Besides, he didn’t want to say the details out loud, he felt this would diminish them, keeping them to himself, protecting them made Draco feel like they couldn't be shattered.

"Right," said Blaise "so why are you so miserable. I thought that was what you wanted? To be friends with Potter?" he went on, his eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

Draco had long suspected that Blaise knew how much his feelings for Potter had changed. Neither of them had ever mentioned it but he saw the knowing look in his friend’s eyes whenever Potter passed them in the corridor or cropped up in conversation. He always seemed to look automatically to Draco as if to test his reaction. 

"It was. It is. But I think I ballsed it up this morning." he said, and lowered his head in to his hands, running his fingers through his hair. 

He explained to Blaise how he had bolted at the arrival of Granger and Weasley and the look of hurt and confusion he had caught on Potter's face as he left the Hospital Wing. A look he was unable to shake from his mind. It made his stomach clench and rolls of regret washed over him every time he thought of his rude and speedy escape from the Hospital Wing. The sight of Potters two best friends has caused a panic to rise in Draco and he couldn’t look either of them in the eye. Echoes of every Mudblood he’d ever thrown at Granger were so loud in his head and he winced when he thought of the terrible things he had said about Weasleys family – about his Mother! He had to get out of there as fast as he could but he knew he had damaged whatever repairs he and Harry had managed the night before.

"You could have at least said goodbye Draco you prat," Blaise scolded shaking his head, "but I'm sure Potter will know why you left so suddenly." He added at the look of despair on Draco's face.

"He might not have realised straight away but he'll work it out. Once he does he’ll probably be glad he’s got the chance to explain to his mates that you two are talking now." Blaise soothed him. Draco prayed he was right.

"How did that come about anyway?" he asked suddenly, "the two of you making friends?" he finished when Draco threw him questioning look.

"Well I went out to check on him in the night -" he saw the corners of Blaise’s mouth twitch as if he was trying not to laugh "-and we sort of ended up talking for a bit.”

“About what?” Blaise asked. Draco couldn’t meet his eyes.

“All sorts of things. Nothing of any significance.” Draco said untruthfully. Everything Potter had said to him held more significance that Draco cared to admit.

“He had no idea I was gay." he went on.

"But you told him?" Blaise asked, his eyebrows arched in surprise.

"Well I assumed he knew so I just mentioned it in passing -" he remembered Potter's reaction and laughed to himself "- but he had no idea."

Blaise was looking at Draco with a strange expression before he asked,

"And how did he take it?"

"Fine," explained Draco, "He was shocked but didn’t seem bothered. He said he had no idea and it was a bit of a shock but then just sort of carried on as if I hadn’t mentioned it. We ended up talking about kissing." he said slowly, remembering Potter's admission that he'd never enjoyed a great kiss before and again losing his concentration thinking of Potter's lips...

"You told Potter you were gay, and this led to a conversation about kissing?" Blaise asked. 

Draco looked at him to find he was grinning slightly. He could definitely read Draco's mind sometimes.

"Stop grinning you idiot. We talked about him kissing girl Weasley. Did you know they'd split up?" he asked, suddenly remembering.

"Yeah, I'd heard Pansy talking about when we first arrived back at school. She was furious that Theo had said he might try and pull Ginny now that she was single." he laughed. 

Theo held no discriminations about houses or rivalries when it came to girls - anyone was fair game.  
"I didn't know they'd broken up." said Draco thoughtfully, he still felt a thrill run through him that Potter was no longer with anyone, despite the fact it was completely irrelevant.

"I'm sure one of the giggling idiots will catch his eye soon enough though." he added, thinking of the bimbos that followed Potter around like little sheep in their herds. He knew his voice sounded bitter and resentful but he didn't care.

"Maybe not..." said Blaise quietly, and he was looking at Draco with a peculiar expression now, his eyes narrowed.

"What do you mean?" Draco asked.

"Well, I overheard a rather interesting conversation in the library last week between Weasley and Granger. Let’s just say, that if they're right, there's going to be a whole host of disappointed ladies around the castle once they find out." 

He was grinning now, but Draco hadn’t the slightest clue what he was on about. Why was he being all cryptic and why was he grinning like a bafoon?

"What conversation? Why are you eavesdropping on private conversations in the library?" he asked, although he was secretly grateful if this was to lead to some interesting news about Potter.

"I wasn't. Well not on purpose," Blaise explained.   
He sat back and leaned against his pillows, drawing his legs up on to the bed. 

"I was trying to get into the Restricted Section so I cast a disillusionment spell to try and sneak past Madame Pince." He explained with a casual aloofness to his blatant rule breaking.

"As I was creeping around the corner, Weasley and Granger were huddled up in one of the window seats, heads together talking about something." he went on.   
Draco was about to ask what he wanted from the restricted section but he was more curious about what he'd overhead so he didn’t interrupt.

"I was going to just slip past them," Blaise went on "when I overheard Weasley say something rather interesting, so I stopped and listened in to hear more." he said. 

He was looking at Draco who was now leaning over, his attention completely captured. He knew Blaise had paused for dramatic effect and he became impatient.

"Yes, what did you overhear?" he asked eagerly.

"Well, he was shaking his head at whatever Granger had said and then I heard him say ‘just because Harry isn't interested in girls or looking for a girlfriend at the minute doesn’t mean he's gay’" he said, looking up at Draco through his lashes, waiting for his reaction.

Draco sat up straight. Why on earth would Weasley and Granger be hiding in dark corner of the library discussing Potter's sexuality?

"Are you sure you heard right?" he asked Blaise. He could feel his blood pumping in his brain.

"Yep." Blaise said with a small nod of his head.

"Did you hear anything else?" Draco asked, his heart had suddenly forgotten to beat,

"Yep..."

"...AND?"

"Well," Blaise said, sitting up again and crossing his legs, "The gist of it seemed to be, that, Potter had dumped the Weaslette and was avoiding the advances of every other girl in school who were throwing themselves at him. Apparently the girl Weasley had told Granger she and Potter had never really done anything more than kiss and she felt that he was always holding something back. Granger had been watching Potter for a while and come to the conclusion that he may in fact, be gay. She was laying the facts out for Weasley who seemed to try and argue to begin with but then even he seemed to agree with her in the end. Potter was probably batting for the other side - he just hadn’t realised it yet."

Draco felt all the air in his lungs leave his body in one blow and he struggled to intake any more breath. His head was spinning as snippets of his conversation with Potter from the night before rang back, replaying in his head,

"I'm useless with the whole dating and girl thing..."

"You've got the right idea being gay..."

"Girls are a nightmare..."

Weasley and Granger were his best friends, they know him better than anyone. If they suspect, then could it be true? Draco thought back to when he had begun to realise his own attraction to boys. It had taken him a while to come around to the idea, in fact it was utter exasperation with Pansy that had finally cracked his resolve and made him open up to the fact that it wasn’t just Pansy he didn’t fancy - he didn’t fancy girls full stop. Was Potter now stuck in the same limbo? Not really finding the idea of girls appealing but completely clueless as to why?

"Draco?" Blaise said quietly, and hearing his name, Draco was pulled back to the surface of the thoughts he had been slowly sinking in. He looked up at Blaise, his eyes wide.

"Do you think they're right?" he asked, but he could tell from the smile on his face that Blaise was in no doubt.  
"Yeah. I'd thought it for a while myself to be honest. He reminds me of you a bit, back before you came out. You had most of the girls around here throwing themselves at you but you weren't interested. You just didn’t realise why at first. I suppose that's how Potter is feeling now, with his hordes of admirers." Blaise explained calmly. 

Did he not realise the absolute enormity of what he was saying?

Draco lay his head back down on his pillow. His heart was suddenly pounding furiously at his chest and his breathing was fast. If Weasley, Granger and Blaise were right, if Potter was gay, that didn’t necessarily mean Draco was in with a chance. But he was in with more of a chance that any of those stupid girls he told himself.

He needed to find out, to know for sure. But how? He couldn’t exactly just ask Potter. He thought back to his actions earlier and chastised himself once more. He needed to go and apologise to Potter first thing in the morning. He would never find out if Potter was gay if he had ruined the friendship they had cautiously began building together. They had potions together first thing. He would make his apologies and then set about uncovering the truth. His heart was fluttering as a new feeling washed over him and he realised what it was: hope.


	11. Chapter Eleven

"Harry? Harry? You okay mate?" 

Ron’s voice snapped him out of stupor and he was suddenly aware that he was still staring at the door Malfoy has recently walked out of.

"What? Sorry, yeah I'm fine." he lied. 

Ron had been filling Harry in on about what had happened while Harry was in the Hospital Wing, he was vaguely aware of something being said about Neville punching Nott in the Great Hall at dinner after hearing him bragging about breaking Harry leg, but Harry wasn’t really listening, and Ron had obviously realised he didn’t have Harry's full attention.

"Is your leg okay?" Hermione asked, looking up from her homework. She'd only been sat there 10 minutes and she'd written half a foot of parchment already.  
"Yeah, my leg is fine. Malfoy gave me some tonic and it eased off." he explained, his stomach tightening as he mentioned Malfoy.

"So was it just the two of you on here all night then?" Ron asked innocently, polishing off the last sausage on the breakfast plate.

"Yeah." Harry answered. He felt a strange emptiness in his stomach – this can't be just because Malfoy didn’t’ say goodbye to him? What was the matter with him.?

"Guessing he stayed hidden away in his chambers all night?" added Ron, glancing over to the door Malfoy had come out of earlier.

It dawned on Harry that his friends would obviously presume he and Malfoy had kept out each other's way throughout the night. This was usual practice. He also realised he had given no thought to how everyone would react to he and Malfoy suddenly becoming friends. They had tentatively repaired old wounds during the course of the last night, laying the foundations of a friendship and it suddenly felt fragile, as though sharing it with anyone else would damage it again. Relief swiftly washed through Harry as he realised this was probably why Malfoy had made such a quick exit when Ron and Hermione had turned up. Of course he would feel awkward around them. They had no idea of the changes that had happened during the night, they weren't inside their bubble, and they were out in the world, carrying on as normal.

Smiling to himself, Harry picked up the rest of his sandwich and finished eating. He looked at his two best friends as they sat with their heads in their books, studying (Ron doing his best impression of someone who was studying). They'd been through everything with Harry, been by his side through every step of his life since the day he'd met them. He wasn’t sure exactly how they'd take to the news that he and Malfoy were sort of friends now, but he had to tell them.

"No, he was out here quite a bit actually." Harry responded. Neither Ron nor Hermione paid him much attention, both looking down at their books.

“Because he had to give you some remedy potion didn’t he?” Hermione asked, as   
she chewed the end of her quill absently.

“Yeah.” He replied.

“Did he take the piss out of your leg?” Ron asked, peering up at Harry. “Bet he loved that didn’t he, little ferret. Hope you told him we were winning 200 – 120 when the game was stopped?” He went on, his ears growing red. 

Harry laughed as he answered, “No he didn’t take the piss. He was all right actually.” 

He thought this was a slight understatement but he felt he ought to ease his friends in gently to the news that he found Malfoy more than a bit all right. That they were sort of friends now.

“Well we’ve said before how much he seems to have changed haven’t we.” Hermione injected, still scribbling away on her parchment. 

"Did you know Malfoy is gay?" Harry heard himself asked suddenly.

Ron’s head snapped up and Hermione looked at Ron then at Harry.

"Gay?" said Ron, sitting up straight and looking at Harry with a look of utter confusion, "Malfoy is gay? How do you know?" he asked, his mouth gaping slightly.

"He told me." Harry said simply, shrugging.

"When?" asked Hermione. She didn't look as shocked as Ron but she had abandoned her homework all the same, obviously interested.

"Last night." explained Harry, pausing for a moment, before adding, 

"He sat out here with me for a bit and we sort of got chatting, and he told me. He thought I already knew. Apparently everyone knows." 

He looked at the two faces at the end of his bed and noticed they were both blank, obviously absorbing this information Harry had just thrown at them. He was a bit disappointment that they weren’t as shocked as Harry had been. He expected a slightly bigger reaction.

"You and Malfoy sat together and chatted?" asked Ron incredulously, his eyebrows raised.

Harry laughed. Even at the news that Malfoy was gay, Ron still seemed more alarmed that he and Malfoy had apparently managed a conversation without killing each other.

"Yeah. He came out to check on me in the night and we just sort of ended up talking."

This was another slight understatement Harry thought, but he didn’t really know to put into words what had happened. He didn’t want to tarnish anything by saying the details out loud.

"He's definitely changed." He explained, and Ron and Hermione were rapt now, giving Harry their full attention. Hermione had even closed her book and moved it to one side.

"Well, yes," said Hermione, "we all noticed he'd changed as soon as we arrived back at school didn't we?" she said. 

"He's like a different person. He still has some of that old Malfoy charm though I think" and she was grinning at Harry with a very knowing look that made Harry's nerves prick.  
"What else did you talk about?” Ron asked, “I'm guessing this wasn’t a 5 minute chit chat if he ended up coming out to you?" he added.

"Everything and nothing really." explained Harry. "He was totally casual when he mentioned being gay because he thought I already knew." 

He suddenly remembered his reaction and felt himself blushing. He wished he could go back and re-do that moment again, a lot cooler and with less spit and stuttering.

"And erm, how did you take it?" Hermione asked, a small smile playing at the edges of her mouth. Harry was sure she could read minds sometimes.

"Well it was a shock wasn’t it," Harry explained defensively, "I wasn’t expecting it. I sort of spat my drink all over him..."

Ron burst out laughing and Hermione looked at Harry before rolling her eyes.

"I didn’t mean it. It was just a shock. I apologised and he seemed fine." he pleaded, wishing Ron would stop laughing at him. He felt sure that Ron would have reacted equally as terrible.

"So, you've put everything in the past behind you now, concerning Malfoy?" 

Hermione asked suddenly. She always strikes straight to the heart of an issue thought Harry, never wasting any time getting to the point.

"I suppose," Harry said quietly. "I don’t hate him anymore, I told him I was just tired of it all and wanted to move on. Forget the war, forget Voldemort and just start again. He felt the same, so we shook on it." 

Harry was looking out the window as he spoke, afraid to meet their eyes. He slowly brought his gaze over to meet Hermione and was surprised to see she was smiling.

"I'm so glad Harry. It was weighing you down. You and Malfoy have always got under each other’s skin and I could see it was bothering you that you have never sorted things properly after you gave him his wand back." She can definitely read minds.

"So you and the ferret are friends now?" Ron asked slowly and Harry looked to see was also grinning. Harry was overcome with love for his two best friends. They were ready to bury the past and move on with Harry and he felt some of the warm glow he had felt the night before return.

"Yeah, suppose so." Harry answered. He realised he had conveniently forgot to mention he and Malfoy had slept on the same bed and he felt perhaps that should stay between the two of them. Their little secret. He wasn’t sure Ron would cope.

"And he's gay?" asked Hermione, looking at Harry with a curious expression.

"Yeah," Harry answered, "came out in 5th year apparently. He got fed up of Pug   
Face chasing him around all the time and decided to tell her. He assumed we all knew. I told him we had no idea." Harry explained.

"Well, I had wondered to be honest..." said Ron, slowly turning to look at Hermione.

"Yeah, me too." Hermione agreed. This was news to Harry.

"What? How come? Why didn’t either of you ever say anything?" 

He realised he was shouting slightly but he was annoyed - why was he always the last to know everything.

"Well, he's so popular with girls, especially in Slytherin but he never seemed interested in any of them." explained Hermione, "I mean he is very handsome and could probably have any girl he wanted but he's never even had a girlfriend." she continued.

"You think he's handsome?" Ron snapped at her, his ears turning red.

"I'm just saying he's considered a handsome guy - you know, by other girls." she laughed and patted his leg gently. "I've heard plenty of girls passing comment on him and they all say he's never shown anyone the slightest interest. So I had wondered if perhaps he just wasn’t into girls at all."

"I just thought he fancied Harry." Ron said bluntly, obviously still a bit irritated that his girlfriend found Malfoy attractive.

"What?" Harry shouted, "Is that a joke?" he laughed, looking from Ron’s face to Hermione’s and back to Ron.

"No." Ron said simply, "he's always been obsessed with you hasn’t he? I mean he always went out of his way to annoy you, didn’t he? It's like when boys are horrible to girls cos they fancy them? Well, Malfoy was always horrible to you cos he probably fancies you." 

He shrugged, very matter of fact. Harry felt like he’d been stunned. His jaw dropped and his eyes widened. Why was he suddenly hearing this now?

"Malfoy definitely does not fancy me." Harry said fiercely. Ron had lost his mind. Malfoy had been horrible to him all these years because - well because he was Slytherin and Harry was Gryffindor, because Harry was "The Boy Who Lived" and Malfoy was the son of a Death Eater. Because Malfoy was a prat and Harry wasn't. It had nothing to do with Malfoy liking Harry.

"Tell him." he pleaded to Hermione. She looked at Harry, frowning slightly before looking at Ron,

"Well who knows." she offered diplomatically, "he might already be seeing someone for all we know." she added.

"He's not." Harry said before he could stop himself.

"Oh, right." They were both grinning stupidly now.

"Piss off the both of you." Harry said and he tossed a pillow down the bed and hit   
them both as they laughed.

"So everyone else knows about this then?" Ron asked, chucking the pillow back up at Harry.

"Yeah, most of Slytherin do anyway. I'm guessing Lavender and Pavarti haven’t caught wind yet or it would be all over the school by now." he added.

"True." laughed Hermione. She brought her legs around in front of her and crossed them, placing her elbows on her knees and leaned closer to Harry, with a hard look on her face.

"So, how do you feel about him being gay?" she asked suddenly, and Harry noticed she emphasised the word you.

"Me? I'm not bothered really, I mean I was shocked, but you know, who cares?"   
He looked at Ron who was looking down playing with the laces on his trainers. Hermione looked at Ron before turning back to Harry and considering him for a moment,

"Well, you've never met anyone who's gay before, have you?" she asked.

"Neither have you two?" Harry shot back at her, unsure of where this conversation   
was heading and wondering why Ron wouldn’t look at him all of a sudden.

"I have actually, I have a cousin who is gay." Hermione added in a matter of fact tone.

"Big deal, so I've never met anyone who's gay?" Harry said, "Now I have. So what?" 

She was chewing on her bottom lip and looked at Ron for a moment before nudging him with her elbow. He didn’t look up but answered 

"Don’t get me involved.”

"Involved in what?" Harry asked, suddenly feeling very hot. Ron’s face was as red as his ears and he lowered his head further, concentrating furiously on a knot in his laces.

"Well," Hermione continued, "it's just funny that Malfoy has come out and told you he's gay. Because Ron and I had been wondering - “she stopped as Ron’s head snapped up and threw her a furious look "well I was wondering - but Ron agreed,” she went on, looking quickly at Ron out the side of her eyes, "Whether, maybe, you were perhaps, gay." She finished, and stared determinedly at Harry, her cheeks filling with a deep scarlet blush.

Harry's head swam. Had he heard her right? She and Ron thought he was gay. Since when? Had they been talking behind his back? Had he suddenly started mincing about the school without realising.

"Excuse me?" he managed to ask.

Hermione threw Ron a pleading look for help which he ignored before carrying on,

"Well you've never really been interested in girls either have you Harry? The whole debacle with Cho was a joke and you weren't even that bothered when it ended. You started off great with Ginny but even she has said that you always seemed to be holding back -"

"Oh right so you've discussed this with Ginny too?" Harry asked, his temper rising.

"No, she just mentioned that she wasn’t surprised when you ended it, as she was always sort of waiting for you to leave. And you're in a similar position to Malfoy Harry - you could have any girl you wanted, and not just because of who you are. You're one of the best looking boys in school not to mention a brilliant Quidditch player; you're smart and funny, and totally unaware of how fanciable you are. Girls are queueing around the castle for you Harry but you're not interested."

Embarrassment washed over him at Hermione's words swiftly followed by a building rage.

"So that must mean I'm gay?" he asked his voice growing steadily louder.

"You're always saying girls are a nightmare mate," Ron said suddenly, looking up for the first time. "Even when we joke about in the dorms and stuff you never join in or seem interested. If you are no-ones bothered." He said, shrugging as if to emphasise the point.

"You said yourself about Malfoy, who cares?"

Harry felt dizzy and very hot. His head was spinning as he tried to take in what he was hearing. It concerned him that Ron and Hermione had voiced some of the things he had actually thought himself. He did think girls were a mystery and avoided anything romantic with them if he could, but that was because he was so useless at the whole thing and made a prat of himself. And so what if he didn’t join in detailed discussion about who had the biggest boobs in Hufflepuff with the lads in the dorm, he just couldn't be bothered, he didn’t care. Did that make him gay?

He remembered Malfoy's response when Harry had asked him how he knew he was gay – he pushed it to the back of his mind.

"I'm not gay." he said firmly, more to himself than anyone else but Ron and Hermione looked at him as he stared unblinking at both of them. Hermione opened her mouth as if to say something but Ron nudged her and said

"Drop it. If he says he's not gay leave him." Harry noticed he didn’t exactly say he believed him but he was thankful to Ron for ending this ridiculous conversation.  
Harry picked up his potions book and opened it to begin his assignment. Ron and Hermione followed suit, taking Harry's indication that the conversation was over. Harry noticed them looking at one another furtively before carrying on with their essays.

Where had all that come from? He felt angry that his two best friends had obviously been talking about him behind his back. And coming to such wild conclusions. Fair enough, he was useless with girls but he'd never even considered for a moment that this might be because he liked boys?

His head was suddenly full of images of Malfoy, lying on the end of his bed, relaxed and dishevelled in his lounge pants and t-shirt and his hair ruffled.... He shook his head. Potions, he told himself as he lowered his head and tried to concentrate on his schoolwork.


	12. Chapter Twelve

Harry lay on his bed later that evening, his mind racing between his night with Malfoy and the shock of his conversation with Ron and Hermione that morning. There was so much to think about and he couldn’t slow his brain down to concentrate on one thought at a time.

Neither of them had brought the subject of Malfoy or anyone else being gay after Harry abruptly ended their discussion. They'd finished their homework in relative silence which was only broken when Ron needed to query something for his essay with Hermione.

By lunch time Harry had been given a few more doses of Skele-Gro by Madame Pomfrey and he could feel the bone in his leg starting to form again. He hobbled around the ward for a little bit, with Ron and Hermione either side of him for support and they had actually ended up laughing as Harry had lost his balance getting back into bed and fallen backwards, taking his potions essay and his pot of ink with him. Hermione cleaned the ink off his pyjamas and Harry forgot he was annoyed with them both as they sat laughing.

A house elf had brought a tray of food up for Harry at midday and despite the fact he was still a bit pissed off with them both he shared his lunch with Ron and Hermione - to which Ron was very grateful.

With a full belly and after some time to think his anger has abated and he was happy to sit and listen as Ron filled him in on the events that followed once Harry was admitted to the Hospital Wing.

Turns out a ruckus had broken out regardless of McGonagall’s warnings and Neville had landed what sounded like a pretty impressive right hook on Nott’s nose when he overheard him bragging about putting “The Chosen One” on the Hospital Wing. Several students had joined in and it was only when Seamus managed to accidentally set fire to an innocent first years robes that everyone agreed to go their own way before McGonagall unleashed hell on them all.

They sat and had a few games of exploding snap to pass the time in the afternoon and once Madame Pomfrey had given Harry his final dose of Skele-Gro and one last check over before dinner he was finally discharged. As he packed up his stuff he felt an odd sense of disappointment wash over him as he glanced at the main doors for the millionth time that day and he realised he had been hoping the Malfoy would pop in on him to see how he was doing. 

As they made their way down the staircase for dinner with Ron eager to get to his next meal Harry suddenly felt sick. His head was so busy trying to get around everything that had happened in the last 24 hours he could feel a headache coming on. He needed a bit of time alone, to think and clear his head. Whatever he had told Ron and Hermione their words had hit a raw nerve somewhere deep inside Harry and he was suddenly questioning everything he knew about himself. In 24 hours so many things Harry would have thought impossible had happened and he didn’t know what to think or feel about it all.

He had excused himself quickly and told them he'd see them back up in the dorms later on. Hermione had protested saying he needed to eat but he managed to escape in the throng of students making their way down the staircase and darted through one of the hidden passageways. 

Once safely inside Gryffindor tower, alone, he had thrown himself down on top of his bed covers and hadn't moved for at least an hour. He could hear people arriving back from dinner down in the common room now but he had no desire for company at the moment.

His head was bursting trying to organise all the emotions and thoughts rushing around inside his brain.

He thought back to the night before, with Malfoy alone on the Hospital Wing. It was a sure recipe for disaster but it had actually been one of the best times Harry had had since before the war. He couldn't explain why exactly. He just knew he felt warmth in his chest whenever he thought about it.

His stomach dropped however as he recalled his embarrassing reaction when Malfoy told him he was gay. He focused hard to try and remember the exact emotions he felt as he digested the news that Malfoy likes boys. He honestly wasn't bothered - it didn't make him think less of Malfoy or anything like that. Of course it was a bit of a shock, he had no idea Malfoy was even single let alone gay. He always imagined Malfoy with a string of Slytherin girls hanging off his arm with him picking and choosing who he fancied at will.

But once the initial shock had worn off, the only thing Harry honestly felt was curiosity. He wondered how Malfoy had realised he was gay? He admitted he had never even kissed a boy – how could he be sure?

Harry's stomach clenched uncomfortably as he recalled a lot of the similarities between he and Malfoy when it came to girls. He himself had admitted he had no idea what he was doing when it came to the opposite sex and Malfoy had said this was one of the reasons he knew he was gay.

But he also said he fancied boys - and Harry did not. He'd never even looked at a boy in that way. 

Apart from Malfoy his brain helpfully reminded him. 

He had sat and watched Malfoy sleep only hours before, noticing how handsome he was. Images of Malfoy's red lips and fluttering eyes burst in Harry's mind…  
Interrupting this terrifying line of thought Ron came creeping through the door, peering around to see Harry lay on the bed. Harry glanced out of the corner of his eye as Ron made his way over to his own bed and sat on the edge, facing Harry.   
He sat silently for a moment before he took a deep breath,  
"You okay mate?" He asked tentatively.

Harry kept his eyes up toward the ceiling.

"Yeah. Just tired. I didn't sleep well, with my leg." He lied. 

He'd slept fine, once he and Malfoy had finished their hot chocolate and talking. His stomach did a sudden somersault.

"Hermione thinks we've upset you - after this morning." Ron went on.

Harry peered up and could see he was flushed and his head was lowered - his guilt written all over his face.

"Hermione thinks a lot of things doesn't she." Harry snapped. 

Being angry at Ron and Hermione again was making him feel better and distracting him.

"She's worried about you mate. You know she over thinks everything. She's been going on about a change in you since last spring and trying to find some way of bringing it up." Ron went on.

"She cares about you mate. We both do. You know you can talk to either of us, if you need to, don’t you?" He finished.

Harry sat up and looked at his best friend.

"So you think Hermione is right then? You think I'm - that I don't like girls?" Harry asked. His face was glowing, he could feel it. For some reason he couldn't say the word - gay.

"Honestly mate, I don't know." Ron admitted. He too was a brilliant shade of red - his face glowing to match his hair.

"I laughed when Hermione first mentioned it but then I thought about it and I wasn't sure. Has it honestly never crossed your mind?" He asked looking up at Harry.

"No." Harry replied automatically.

"At least not until this morning with you two planting the seed in my mind. Now my heads all over the place." He admitted, raking his fingers through his hair. He felt like he needed to dig his fingers right in to his brain and pull out all the random thoughts bouncing around inside.

"Why, what are you thinking now?" Ron asked. He leaned forwards slightly towards Harry and gave him a deep, penetrating stare.

"I don't know." Harry conceded. 

He stood up and walked around the bed, trying to construct his thoughts into some sort of order. He paced back a few times before sitting back down in front of Ron.

"I'm a mess with girls." He admitted.

"Yeah, I won't argue there mate." Ron laughed lightly.

"I don't fancy anyone at the minute. Girl or boy." He explained.

"Fair enough." Ron shrugged.

"Malfoy said he wasn't attracted to girls, he didn't like the idea of kissing them or feel anything romantic towards then and that's sort of how he knew he was gay." Harry went on, remembering their conversation the night before.

"Well yeah, that pretty much sounds 100% gay." Ron agreed smiling.

"I mean I don't have a great track record myself but I've known I fancied the pants of Hermione ever since we needed to find dates for the Yule Ball. I wanted to ask her so much but I was just too scared. It was then I knew she was more than a friend, you know?" He smiled at Harry.

"I definitely fancied Ginny." Harry said firmly.

"But you don't anymore?" Ron asked.

"No." Harry answered. "I don't even know when I stopped. It just felt different after the war, and all that time apart. I felt different." He went on. He'd never sat and thought about any of this before. It felt good in a weird way, to get it all straight in his head and talk about it.

"But splitting up with Ginny, not fancying anyone at the moment, that doesn't make me gay." He said and he could hear the pleading in his own voice, wanting Ron to agree with him.

"Seamus is single. So is Dean. I don’t hear anyone asking them if they're gay." He threw at Ron, raising his eyebrows questioningly.

"Seamus is definitely not gay mate. He's like a dog in heat - he fancies everyone. His only trouble is not scaring girls away." Ron explained shaking his head.  
"And Dean has been trying to get into Susan Bones from Hufflepuff for weeks. He's quiet and not as openly pervy as Seamus but he's not gay" he finished looking apologetic.

"Right." was all Harry could manage to say.

"Look, you've been through loads lately haven't you?" Ron went on.

"You practically won the war single handed; you had all the trials to give evidence at after. It's a lot to take isn't it? You mind isn't going to be on girls or dating anyone or anything is it? I reckon you just carry on as you are mate. Someone will catch your eye in the end. If it's a girl great. If it's a boy, then Hermione will be right again won't she? Not like we're not used to that by now." He laughed.

Harry was grateful for Ron’s simple and rather laid back approach to the whole thing. It was also a comfort to know that Ron couldn't care less if Harry was gay or straight or completely asexual.

He'd take Ron’s advice he told himself. Just carry on and see what happens. Ron was right - someone will catch his eye in the end. 

His mind was suddenly filled with blonde hair and silver eyes and he groaned to himself, rolled over and stuffed his head under his pillow. What if someone already had caught his eye?


	13. Chapter Thirteen

Pouring himself some pumpkin juice Draco's eyes darted over to the Gryffindor tables for the millionth time since he had sat down 5 minutes ago.  
Nott, Goyle and Blaise were all deep in discussion about getting tickets for an upcoming Weird Sisters concert and debating asking Pansy or else suffer her throwing a fit at not being invited. Draco had nodded and made noncommittal grunts whenever one of them engaged him, but his concentration was over the other side of the hall. 

Weasley and Granger had come down to breakfast without Potter and he had spent the last 5 minutes watching the door and waiting for him to arrive.  
Pansy swanned in and caught Draco’s eye, his disappointment probably obvious in his face. Each time someone walked he would turn hoping to see Potter and each time was disappointed. She made her way over to the table and dropped down in the vacant seat beside Draco.

"Morning handsome." she purred at him and gave him what he guessed was an attempt at a sultry look. Bringing his goblet up to his mouth to hide his grin he managed to murmur "morning" before his eyes darted back over to the Gryffindor table.

He had lay awake most of the night unable to tear his mind away from Potter and the bombshell Blaise had dropped on him. The possibility that Potter could be gay made Draco's head spin. He had convinced himself then unconvinced himself repeatedly throughout the night that Blaise could be right. 

Remembering their conversation from the Hospital Wing Draco felt Potter could be gay but was as yet unaware. He would then laugh and tell himself it was wishful thinking and there was no way - Potter was 100% straight.

He had no idea how he was going to find out for sure but he knew the first thing he needed to do was make sure he hadn't upset Potter too much by his rude departure from the ward the morning before. They had potions first lesion – maybe he could catch Potter on their way out and have a quick word, ask him how his leg was doing and then find a way to apologise for rushing off without saying goodbye. He had decided it was best to just be honest and tell Potter he was unsure how Weasley and Granger would react to them being friends and that was why he left in such a hurry. Blaise was right, Potter would understand and had probably already worked it out for himself. Or at least Draco hoped so.

Pansy was buzzing about to his right and as he felt her lean over him under the pretense of speaking to Blaise she placed her hand on his thigh, squeezing gently. 

God, she really couldn’t take a hint.

He stood suddenly and told them he'd see them in class and made his way out of the hall. He'd given up trying to dissuade Pansy’s advances instead choosing to ignore her.

As he walked out of the hall he glanced over at Weasley and Granger who were making their own way out of the hall. Where was Potter? Was he still in the Hospital Wing?  
Nope, he was in the entrance hall and looking directly at Draco. The butterflies that had been sleeping since Draco left the ward the day before awoke and resumed their dance. He paused for a moment to collect his nerves before walking slowly over to Potter, deciding to make his apologies quickly and hoping Potter wasn't to upset with him.

As he approached he smiled weakly and his heart fluttered as he saw Potter's eyes run up and down Draco. He was glad he had made a bit more of an effort this morning and triple checked himself in the mirror before he left. The last time Potter had seen him properly he was a mess in dirty bed clothes. He discreetly gave Potter the once over – out of habit - and found he was his usual dishevelled gorgeous self. His hair was ruffled and reminded Draco of Potter in bed, fresh from sleep. He had left his top button open on his shirt and his tie was loose and untidy. A hint of Potter's neck was visible underneath and Draco swallowed hard and pulled his eyes away. Looking up he noticed Potter seemed awkward; stuffing his hands in his pockets and was shifting slightly.

"Glad to see you're back on your feet." He said smiling and nodding his head down towards Potter's legs.

"Yeah, Madame Pomfrey sorted me out in no time." Potter said. He was smiling at Draco but it seemed forced. Draco hated the tension between them and wanted to return to the easy, relaxed comfort they’d enjoyed while on the Hospital Wing. He was going to have to get this over with -

"’I’m sorry I left so quickly." He said suddenly, feeling it was best to get it out the way quickly, like ripping off a plaster. He looked at Potter and felt his gaze burning. He wanted Potter to know he meant it. He was truly sorry.

"Yeah, what was all that about?" He asked, and Draco was pleased to see he was smiling…

"Ron and Hermione don’t bite you know?" He added.

Relief washed over Draco like a warm hug and he realised he's been holding his breath. He let out a long low breath and felt his shoulders relax. Potter had understood, just as Blaise said he would.

"All the same, I think they'd have thought they'd walked into some strange alternate universe if they found us sat together drinking hot chocolate and talking." He laughed. He revelled in the sound of referring to him and Potter as "us" and as he recalled them lying on the bed talking together he could feel their bubble reforming around them.

"They'd have probably assumed I'd confounded you." He added, laughing.

"I filled them in once you left, they were fine." Potter went on, looking up at Draco through his lashes, his beautiful green eyes shining. Was he blushing? Draco suddenly wondered how much he had told his friends and he felt himself blushing to match Potter's.

"Did you tell them everything?" He asked, trying to imagine Weasley’s face if he knew they'd slept in the same bed.

"Well no, I edited a bit..." Potter admitted and Draco's breath hitched as he noticed his blush deepen. Potter shifted again, adjusting the strap of his bag over his shoulder. He looked stunning even when he was blushing and awkward.  
"Right, yeah, probably a good idea." Malfoy mumbled. He looked at Potter and his thoughts began to spiral again. Was he blushing because he was embarrassed having shared a bed with another boy or because it affected him and he wasn't sure why? He reined his wandering mind in before it trailed off with thoughts of Potter in bed, dishevelled and disarmingly gorgeous.

"You heading down to potions?" He asked glancing at his watch. They were cutting it fine now - he'd lost track of time since bumping into Potter. Potter glanced quickly over Draco’s shoulder before replying.

"Yep" and he turned his body slightly in the direction of the dungeons and looked at Draco with a smile that made Draco’s stomach erupt. He followed Potter, jubilant at the ease in which they had slipped back into their bubble. They walked down the dark stone passage in silence and Draco noticed Potter glancing at him out of the corner of his eyes. He was trying to think of something cool or funny to say when he heard a voice behind them shouting Potter's name.

They stopped and turned as a Ravenclaw girl Draco recognised striding towards them. He felt like a hot poker had been plunged into his stomach. She was alarmingly attractive. Her long blonde hair flowed behind her as she walked and she had missed a button on her shirt (probably on purpose Draco scowled) and it was revealing a rather generous bust. Theo would have sold his own Mother for a chance to speak to this girl. 

Draco suddenly hated her.

"Hi Harry." She said brightly, not even acknowledging Draco.

"Rude cow." He thought to himself. He was clenching his fists and stuffed his hands in his pockets quickly.

"Erm, hi." Potter said quietly. Draco thought he saw his eyes flicker across to where Draco was standing.

"I was just wondering if you're going on the next Hogsmeade trip." She asked confidently, cutting right to the chase. God, she was as desperate as Pansy.  
Draco was suddenly curious. This might actually be perfect timing. Even he knew this girl was very pretty and most of the lads would trip over themselves for a date with her. But how would Potter react?

He seemed tense and was biting on his bottom lip, staring down at the floor.

"I haven’t thought about it..." He answered the girl without looking at her.

"Well, maybe we could go together and have some lunch in the Three Broomsticks or something?" She asked, flipping her hair over her shoulder.

"Slut." Draco thought to himself.

"Oh. Well, I’m not even sure I'm going yet." Potter told her and he took a step back as the girl took a step closer to him. Draco smiled to himself.

"But I'll probably just head down with some friends if I do...."

Draco suddenly recognised the look on Potter's face. It was fear. He'd felt it himself back when the girls in Slytherin used to make their advances on him. He felt like someone had smacked him in the face. He was feeling more convinced than ever......

"Right. Well maybe I'll see you there?" She said, still sounding hopeful and throwing Potter a wide smile.

"God, take the hint." Draco thought dryly.

Potter smiled feebly back but didn’t answer her. Draco stared at the girl, waiting for her to sod off. He felt Potter looking at him before turning and carrying on towards potions.

Draco fell back into step beside him, deciding on the spot to push Potter further, see if he could get under his skin. He had to agree with Blaise, Potter was definitely not interested in girls….

"Perks of being you I suppose Potter?" He laughed, able to see the funny side now that the girl had been turned down outright.

"I wouldn't call it a perk." Potter snapped. His face was flushed and he was frowning.

"Really." Draco muttered. Interesting. Most straight boys certainly would. His butterflies started up their dance again. They approached the classroom just in time as Slughorn opened the door and everyone began filing in.

"Most boys would love attractive girls throwing themselves at them in dark corridors." He went on, unable to stop himself. He could see Potter squirming. He was so clearly uncomfortable and a thrill ran through Draco, his certainty that Potter was gay solidifying with each second.

In the distraction of their conversation they had both walked to the same desk, at the back of the class and placed their bags on top. He noticed a few heads turn at their seating arrangement but he didn’t care. He could see himself in Potter so clearly now – confused and scared and unable to work out his feelings.

"She was very pretty." He blundered on, knowing he was making Potter uncomfortable but to excited to care. "For a girl." He added, smirking.

"Was she?" Potter asked distractedly.

Draco’s chest felt as though it was about to burst. He was sure now, positive Potter was gay and hasn’t worked it out yet. Well, Draco was more than happy to help him out.

"Maybe she's just not your type." He whispered slowly. He felt Potter's breath hitch at the side of him and he glanced up and could see his frown deepening in that beautiful face, his face flushed with a glorious blush. He seemed lost for words and Draco turned calmly to face the front and leave Potter to ponder that for a while. Let him work out what exactly was his type.

Slughorn called the class to order from the front.

"No practical work today I'm afraid, we'll be reviewing our work on antidotes and making detailed notes for your Christmas exams." He explained and tapped the projector that was at up the front of the class with his wand. It spun to life and with a further wave if his wand, Slughorn lowered the lamps and the class was suddenly in semi darkness. Everything around him disappeared and all Draco was aware of was the fast breathing from the boy next to him and the heat from his own body as they sat so close. Close enough to touch but still not touching, hidden in the veil of darkness.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

As soon as the lights were dimmed, all of Harry senses seemed to awaken and heighten. His breath was coming in short sharp gasps and his heart was pounding. He was suddenly acutely aware of the boy sat beside him and Malfoy seemed to be giving off a red hot heat. They were sat as close as possible without touching and Harry glanced cautiously to his left. Malfoy was sat staring right ahead, his attention on the slides Slughorn was presenting to the class.

"Maybe she's just not your type?"

Had he meant to sound so accusing? Or was Harry imagining the suggestive the suggestive tone of his voice, still sensitive from his conversations with Ron and Hermione? The words were ringing in Harry's head. No, apparently she wasn't his type. He felt absolutely nothing when she had asked him out, in all her pouting and hair flicking glory. He didn’t feel anything when any of the girls asked him out - except exasperation. And fear.

He was mortified that Malfoy had witnessed him in such an awkward situation and seen first hand how utterly useless he was with girls. Trying hard not to think what Hermione would have said had she been there Harry tried to concentrate on what Sughorn was saying at the front of the class.

He was distracted however with the heat that seemed to be emanating between him and Malfoy. He was frozen in his seat, his eyes the only part of him he seemed able to move, which darted sideways throwing glances at the blonde sat next to him every 3 seconds.

He watched as Malfoy brought his hand up to scratch his nose and as he lowered his arm, their arms brushed together and his hand landed beside Harry's, the backs of their palms touching lightly. It was such a simple action but Harry's whole arm suddenly felt as though it were on fire. The rest of the room slipped away and both of his legs could have dropped off and he wouldn't have noticed. All he could focus on was his left hand, touching Malfoy's, and the shivers that were running up and down his arm. His breath caught in his chest suddenly and Malfoy's head turned slightly to look at him. Harry determinedly kept his gaze forward. He was too scared to look, or even move.

What was the matter with him? How could something as trivial as touching hands with Malfoy be igniting his nerves. He'd never felt like this before. Hermione’s words rang loudly in his ears and he mind was suddenly full of images of Malfoy, lying on his bed, in his lounge pants, his hair ruffled. He remembered watching Malfoy sleep and drinking in his face, the way his leg had trembled when Malfoy had checked him before giving him his potion. He hadn't realised it at all at the time - but he had enjoyed it. His heart had hammered and his nerves had tingled at every touch. 

Hermione was right. 

Ron was right. 

He was gay. 

And of all the students in school, all the people in the world, it was Draco sodding Malfoy who had finally caught Harry's attention.

He shifted in his seat. He felt dizzy. He felt scared. He could feel himself trembling. As he shifted Malfoy turned slightly looking at him and their legs were suddenly pressed up together. Heat pooled deep in Harry's groin and he let out a low breath. This couldn't be happening. He was not realising he was gay, in the middle of potions class and fighting an erection because Malfoy was touching his leg. He must be dreaming. What unfair deity had decided to make him gay for Malfoy of all eople? 

This could only happen to him.

He shifted again in his seat, his trousers suddenly uncomfortable, but this only resulted in bringing him closer to Malfoy. He heard Malfoy gasp quietly and chanced another glance across to his pale face. He was looking at Harry with his head turned slightly and his eyes were ablaze with a look that made Harry's muscles tighten somewhere below his stomach. His mouth was open slightly and he was breathing slow and laboured, his lips were red and inviting. Harry had a reckless urge to lean over and kiss him. He'd certainly never felt this way about any of the girls who had thrown themselves at him recently. He looked down at Malfoy's mouth and bit his own lip. He needed to tear his gaze away, regain control of himself.

He blinked and turned his attention back to the front of the class. He had absolutely no idea what Slughorn was saying. He glanced down at his left hand which was still pressed against the back of Malfoy's. He wanted to turn his hand and take Malfoy's in his, Palm to Palm, enclosing their fingers together. As the thought formed in his head Malfoy's hand suddenly moved and his fingers brushed slowly and softly across Harry's, up and down in a subtle but deliberate motion.

He could no longer remember how to breathe, he didn’t know where he was, the entire room fell away and all that existed was Malfoy.

He knows, thought Harry. He, like Ron and Hermione had picked up on something Harry hadn't and he knew. Was Ron right? Did Malfoy like him? Was sitting here, in the dark, so closely, affecting Malfoy as much as it was Harry. Harry's heart constricted tightly and he was still struggling to breath. Unless, he thought in a panic, Malfoy knew he was gay and was teasing him, taunting him? Had he changed that much that he would pass an opportunity to make Harry's life miserable?

His mind was torn back to the Hospital Wing and how genuine and sincere Malfoy had been. And Ron’s assumption that Malfoy liked him. Maybe he knew the effect he was having on Harry and was - flirting with him..? Digesting this possibility Harry looked down again at their hands. He thought of all the kisses he had shared with Ginny, the few disastrous moments he had shared with Cho and realised that none of these moments had affected him the way Malfoy touching his hand was.

He remembered all of the situations he had faced over the years, battling dragons, Dark Wizards and Death Eaters - none of them scared him as much as the realisation of liking Malfoy. But he wasn't sure which scared him the very most - Malfoy toying with him for a laugh? Or Ron being right, and Malfoy felt the same as he did.

oOo

The lamps all around the dungeon were extinguished and the only light came from the projector at the front of the classroom. Being plunged in to semi-darkness seemed to awaken Draco’s other senses and as the rest of the classroom disappeared into the shadows, all he could focus on was Potter sat so close beside him.

Draco was aware of the effect his last comment had had on Potter. He could feel his breath quickening beside him and he knew he was glancing over, giving Draco furtive looks out of the corner of his eye. It took all the strength Draco could muster to keep his eyes facing forward. Not that he was paying the slightest bit of attention to what Slughorn was saying - he was too distracted by the intense heat that seemed to have filled the tiny space between himself and Potter. They were as close as they could be without touching - Draco could move slightly and his arm would be pressed against Potter's, or their shoulders. He remembered Potter moving back when the Ravenclaw girl had closed the space between them and he wondered would he do the same with Draco? Was it contact in general he was uncomfortable with or only when it came to girls. He wasn’t making much of an effort to move away from Draco now. 

It did occur to Draco that the thought of such a simple touch shouldn't be setting off his nerves in to frenzy but as he felt Potter breath hitching beside him, he couldn't remember anyone ever having such an effect on him. He wanted to touch Potter so badly he ached, and unable to stop himself he brought his hand up to his face pretending to scratch his nose and slowly lowered his arm so that the back of his hand brushed Potter's, landing so that their hands were touching lightly. Bolts of electric heat began scorching up Draco’s arm as they had back in the Hospital Wing, once again making a beeline to his heart. He was thrilled when Potter made no attempts to shift away from Draco, his hand lay still, brushing up against Draco’s and intensifying the heat.

He heard Potter gasp quietly beside him and the sound caused a deep heat to pool in Draco’s groin. Vaguely aware of blood rushing below his waist he turned his head slightly to look at Potter's face. He wanted to see those hypnotic green eyes and search for any signs that this contact was having the same effect on Potter as it was him. He was trying to tease Potter into realising he was gay, but he was causing his own nerves to dance as a result.

Potter stared at the front of the class, unblinking and Draco could tell he was trying with every effort not to look at him. He lowered his head and looked at their hands again. He remembered his kiss with Daphne which had left him cold and a bit queasy. With one simple touch of their hands Potter had caused Draco's senses to erupt.

Potter suddenly shifted in his seat and the distance between them closed in. Draco turned slightly to look at Potter just as he shifted again and their legs were pressed tightly against each other, thigh to thigh. 

His breath hitched and Draco looked without thinking in Potter's direction. Their eyes met and Draco felt blood pool across his cheeks. Potter's eyes were wide and full of a burning look, heating Draco’s blood. He noticed Potter's breathing was coming just as quick as his own. As he lost himself in Potter's blistering look his stomach tightened as Potter's gaze dropped fleetingly to look at Draco’s mouth, biting his own lip distractedly before turning and looking back towards the front of the class.  
Draco couldn't tear his eyes away from Potter's face. This was all too much. In 2 days they'd crossed so many obstacles and each time Draco thought he had hit the jackpot Potter would throw something else his way.

Was it wishful thinking that was making Draco see a lust in Potter's face, the way his eyes flickered to Draco’s mouth, as if he could read Draco’s thoughts and was thinking of kissing him. He remembered the look he gave the Ravenclaw girl and his stomach did a sudden somersault. He hadn’t looked so intense or undone when he looked at her.

He watched as Potter's gaze fell to their hands, still resting on the desk, innocently, with the backs of their palms touching. Without thinking, acting on pure impulse, Draco ran his fingers slowly and softly up and down the back of Potter's fingers. He felt a tremble run through Potter, or was his own body that was trembling? He wasn't even sure. As he fought every urge to turn and grab his face, throwing all caution to the wind and kiss Potter, he took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves.   
He was positive now that Blaise was right, Potter was gay. And he hadn’t flinched once from Draco’s touch. The slight possibility that Potter could feel the same way he did filled Draco with excitement and fear in equal measure and his heart pounded in a way that it only ever did for Potter.


	15. Chapter Sixteen

Vaguely aware of noise and movement around him, Draco realised that the bell must have rang, signaling the end of class. He blinked as the lamps glowed again lighting the room and looked down at their hands still resting innocently with the backs of their palms touching,. As Potter slowly pulled his arm up the table, brushing Draco along the way, felt a shiver work its way up his arm.

He stood up quickly, trembling and glanced across to Potter, able to see him more clearly with the lamps back on.

He was pleased to see Potter was looking extremely flustered. His cheeks burned and his eyes were glazed as he gathered up his things. Draco threw his bag over his shoulder and turned to look at Potter. He took a small step towards him and smiled to himself when Potter remained rooted to the spot, remembering how he had moved back when the busty Ravenclaw girl had done the same thing. He heard Potter gasp slightly and his heart fluttered, a smile flourished on his face as he leaned towards a terrified looking Potter and said quietly.

“That was an interesting lesson,” and he watched as Potter swallowed nervously, distracted again by his Adam's apple. He was not referring to anything Slughorn had said of course and he hadn’t listened to a single word. He also knew Potter was aware of what he was referring to.

“I learnt quite a bit, how about you Potter?” he said, exhibiting much more feistiness than he actually felt. His knees were weak and he was struggling to keep his breathing even.

Potter didn’t answer, he just stood and stared at Draco with his green eyes wide, burning with something Draco was too scared to acknowledge. He thought he heard his name being called, as though from a great distance but he couldn’t tear his eyes away from Potter's.

Potter blinked suddenly and looked over Draco’s shoulder, breaking the apparent hypnosis Draco had lost himself in. He watched as Potter shifted uncomfortably. He wanted to take him in his arms and tell him he knew exactly how he felt. That the feelings of fear and confusion were okay, and he wasn’t going crazy. He wanted to be the one Potter talked to, like he had talked to Blaise. He wanted to pull him into their bubble and tell him everything was going to be okay.

He was aware of movement around him for the first time and he looked up to see Weasley and Granger walking over to the desk he and Potter were still stood behind. Weasley had a stupid grin on his face and Granger was looking at Potter with wide eyes. Draco reminded himself that they knew, even if Potter didn’t. His stomach flipped suddenly as he wondered if they had also worked out Draco’s feeling for Potter. Granger probably had, nothing seemed to get by her.

Smiling at Potter he grabbed his bag and turned to leave.

“See you later Potter.” He said quietly before turning to nod at Weasley and Granger, bidding farewell to them in an effort to remain polite. They were Potter's best friends after all.

As he made his way over to the door he noticed Blaise was waiting for him, with a look of amused curiosity. Strolling past him he noticed him nod in Potter's direction before following Draco out into the corridor. Once outside Draco let out a long, low breath. He felt as though he had been holding his breath for an hour.

“What was all that about?” Blaise asked as he walked alongside Draco.

“What?” Draco asked innocently, unsure of what Blaise had actually seen,

“You and Potter, eye fucking each other at the end of the lesson.” Blaise said laughing.

“I think you’re right,” Draco blurted out, “I think he is actually gay.”

He had stopped in the middle of the corridor and there was no-one else around. He looked at Blaise and could feel himself shaking. Now that he was out, in the cold empty corridor away from Potter he could think a little more clearly.

“Well, obviously Draco,” Blaise said with a tone like he was explaining something very complicated to a two year old. “Glad you’ve finally caught up. You both looked pretty flustered, was something said?” he asked, starting to walk again and pulling Draco’s elbow gently for him to follow. They made their way up to Flitwick’s classroom.

“No, nothing was said,” Draco answered “not out loud anyway…” he added quietly.   
As he and Blaise took their seats at the back of Charms he quietly filled Blaise in on their encounter with the Ravenclaw girl and Potter's reaction. They were interrupted however when Professor Flitwick called the class to attention.

“I’ll tell you properly later.” He whispered to Blaise.

He spent the rest of the day lost in thought, unable to concentrate in any of his lessons which earned him a stern telling off from McGonagall when he failed to answer her question, unaware of anything she had said since she began the lesson.  
By the time he reached the Great Hall for dinner that evening he had a massive headache. He sat beside Blaise and carrying on their conversation from earlier on. He’d been unable to speak to him all day and was bursting to talk about Potter. He wasn’t quite sure how to put in to words what had happened in potions class but he knew Blaise would understand somehow.

He knew he hadn’t imagined the way Potters breath had hitched when their legs were pressed together, or the way he seemed to shudder when Draco had brushed his hand softly with his fingertips. He had no idea what had made him do that, the need to reach out and touch Potter was overwhelming and he had acted on pure impulse. He hoped he hadn’t mistaken the obvious tremble that had rippled down Potters arm under Draco’s touch.

“So, he seemed nervous when you touched him?” Blaise asked as Draco finished telling him what had happened.

“Definitely. I could feel him trembling and his breathing was all over the place.” Draco said, growing hot as remembered the tremble then ran from Potter through to him as they sat with their thighs pressed together.

“I mean I’m not saying he likes me specifically or anything,” Draco added, “But he definitely does not like girls.” He finished. Truth be told he had allowed his thoughts to wander with the possibility that Potter might have some sort of feelings for him.

“Well you certainly had some effect on him, the look on his face before we left class…?” Blaise pondered and his eyes drifted over to the other side of the hall. Draco knew he was looking at Potter but he had determinedly stopped himself from looking over to the Gryffindor table since they had sat down.

“He’s looking over.” Blaise said suddenly and Draco’s head snapped up instinctively to see Potter standing and making his way out of the hall with Granger. He let out a low moan as he thought how gorgeous Potter looked. He had clearly been running his fingers through his hair which looked like it did when he was in bed on the Hospital Wing. He had taken off his tie and unbuttoned his top button, revealing the dip at the base of his neck.

“It’s worse now isn’t it – now that you know he’s probably gay?” asked Blaise sympathetically. Draco knew he was referring to his feelings towards Potter, and his attempt to keep them hidden.

“Yeah.” Draco replied, still staring at the door even though Potter was now out of sight.

“You should talk to him. You know how he’s feeling, you could help him.” Blaise suggested. Draco turned to look at his friend and saw that he was giving Draco a small, suggestive grin.

“Help him how?” he asked.

“I’m sure you could think of something.” Blaise said cheekily.

Draco could think of a million way to help Potter out of the proverbial closet – Dragging him out by the scruff of his shirt and kissing him until his lips hurt being top of his list. Glancing down at his watch he stood up, draining the last of his pumpkin juice,

“I’d better get going. I’ve got stuff to do for Madame Pomfrey. I’ll see you back in the common room later.” He told Blaise and made his way of the hall. He had promised her he would prepare a few simple potions for the ward and also get some supplies for her store cupboard. Slughorn had told him he would leave his classroom unlocked so he could get to work after dinner.

As he made his way back down the dungeons his thoughts were once again on Potter and he smiled as he passed the spot the poor Ravenclaw girl had been rebuffed earlier. He smiled to himself as he remembered her obvious flirting and how gallant she had been, practically jumping on Potter despite his obvious disinterest. With a slight spring in his step Draco made his way into the potions classroom, remembering how Potter hadn’t flinched away from him when Draco had moved closer ….


	16. Chapter Seventeen

“What was all that about?” Hermione asked as she followed Harry out of potions.

“All what?” he asked and his voice sounded hoarse.

“You and Malfoy, staring at eachother. How did you end up sat next to him?” she asked.

She didn’t sound annoyed. Or even surprised. She sounded amused. Harry looked up to Ron and Hermione faces staring at him intently and he knew immediately what they were thinking. He couldn’t have this conversation right now. He needed to get his head straight, sort out what he was thinking and digest everything he had felt during the last 45 minutes sat next to Malfoy in the darkness. He could still feel the back of his left palm tingling from Malfoys touch.

“ We walked in together and just ended up at the same desk, no big deal.” He shrugged, nonchalant. He didn’t feel nonchalant. His nerves were all still stood on end and his head was spinning. 

He felt Ron and Hermione exchanging looks behind him but neither of them said anything as they followed Harry up the corridor and out of the dungeons.

The rest of the day passed in an absolute blur. Harry couldn’t concentrate on any of his lessons and sat in silence at dinner that night, barely eating a thing. Ron and Hermione kept throwing him worried looks and Hermione asked if he was okay at regular 10 minute intervals. He wasn’t ready to talk about anything yet. His head was all over the place.

The thought of him being gay had never even occurred to him before. The fact that he was terrible with girls was something he had accepted but he never assumed this was because he preferred boys.

He then remembered all of the feelings he had experienced with Malfoy during his night on the hospital wing and earlier in potions. He’d never felt like that before. Every nerve was afire and his skin tingled at the slightest touch. He remembered the burning look Malfoy had given him and the effect it had on his head beat and the blood flow to his groin. The obvious conclusion was that Ron and Hermione were right, Harry was gay. The thought of being gay didn’t bother him, what did bother him was that he seemed to be the last one to notice. As usual.

As he pondered this he looked around the Great Hall at the other boys. Seamus was sat opposite having a heated debate with Dean about which was the better sport, Quidditch or muggle football. He supposed Seamus could be considered good looking. He had bright blue eyes which Harry had heard a few girls commenting on in the past. He suddenly thought of Malfoys eyes, like molten mercury, speckled with silver and his stomach lurched.

Glancing around he could see Ernie McMillan over at the Hufflepuff table. He’d grown quite a bit the previous summer and was quite tall and broad these days. His sandy blonde hair was always arranged in to a carefully orchestrated mess which suited his soft features. Harry had often envied how he could make his hair seem messy and look good at the same time, having long given up trying to tame his own hair. But again, he didn’t feel any what you would call attraction to him. 

He looked up and his eyes fell to another blonde head, this one bright white, standing out against the sea of students. Malfoy was sat across the hall eating dinner with Blaise. They were deep in conversation and Harry’s heart seemed to drop a considerable distance to the pit of his stomach. He definitely didn’t fancy any of the other boys in school, but there was no denying Malfoy was having an effect on him. Maybe he wasn’t gay – maybe he just had a thing for Malfoy. Shaking his head at his own stupidity Harry stood abruptly. He had to get away, get some space to think.

Ron and Hermione looked up at him as he made to leave the table.

“Where you off?” Ron asked, frowning up at Harry.

“Library.” Harry answered, “I’m going to make a start on that essay for McGonagall.”

He didn’t meet their eyes as he hated lying to them – even it was trivial. Hermione stood quickly and grabbed her bag.

“I’ll come with you, I could do with starting my Ancient Runes essay. See you in the common room later?” She gave Ron a very purposeful look and he stared at her for a moment before looking over to Harry and finally nodding.

“Yeah sure, see you both later.”

Harry wasn’t stupid. He knew Hermione wanted to get him on his own and that she and Ron had probably discussed how she would manage this and what she would say. He found he didn’t have the head space to worry about that right now. He just wanted to get away and think.

They walked together out of the hall and Harry used all of his self control not to look over to the Slytherin table. They walked to the library in silence and when they entered they found it relatively empty. Hermione made her way over to a small alcove near the History section and there were no other students nearby. Harrys heart sank as he realized she had chosen a quiet, private spot so that they wouldn’t be overheard when she quizzed him.

Throwing his bag down on the floor Harry slumped into one of the empty seats and lowered his head down on to the table, resting his forehead on his hands. He let out a loud sigh as he felt Hermione take the seat next to him and she hesitantly placed her hand over his. He took a deep breath before looking up to meet her gaze. She was smiling at him sympathetically. 

“Are you okay?” she asked quietly. He felt a small amount of annoyance at her, this was all her fault anyway. She was the one who mentioned him being gay in the first place, got him questioning himself.

“I’m sorry about yesterday.” She went on. “It’s none of mine or Rons business who you like and we shouldn’t have just barged in with suggestions about you, or Malfoy.” 

His annoyance at his best friend quickly faded. This wasn’t’ Hermiones fault and he didn’t want her to feel guilty. He did his best to smile at her, feebly.

“But I can see that something is bothering you Harry,” she went on. “What happened with Malfoy this morning in potions?”

“Who said anything happened?” he snapped

“I saw you both staring at eachother.”

“We were not staring…”

“Yes you were and you both blushing furiously.”

“We weren’t – “

“Yes you were. You both looked as though you didn’t even know everyone else was still in the room.”

Harry stared at her, gawping slightly. They both looked like that? Malfoy too?

“Do you fancy him?” she asked suddenly. Harrys cheeks pooled with a deep blush.

Bloody hell Hermione don’t dance around the issue, just get straight to the point!

“No.” he replied automatically.

Her eyebrows raised slightly and she chewed her bottom lip for a moment. Taking in a deep breath she sat up and folded her arms.

“I think you do.” She said bluntly.

“Well you’re wrong, for once.”

“He gets under your skin Harry –“

“Not anymore, he used to annoy me but –“

“You look at him in a way you don’t look at anyone else.”

“I do not. I hardly ever look at him I’m – “

“You do.” She interrupted stubbornly. “You don’t even know you’re doing it. I noticed it weeks ago when we first arrived back. There’s always been something there between the two of you Harry.”

“Mutual hatred!” Harry said a little angrier than he intended. He was feeling dizzy again. 

“You said you didn’t hate him anymore.”

“I don’t.” he sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. “I don’t know what I feel.” He said. His head felt ready to explode. He couldn’t get Malfoys words out of his mind, “maybe she’s just not your type”. Had Malfoy somehow realized that HE was Harrys type? Harry remembered Rons advice that someone would catch his eye and dread washed over him again and he groaned.

Hermione leaned over and placed her hand on top of Harrys.

“Why don’t you talk to Malfoy?” she asked.

Harrys head snapped up and he gave her a disbelieving look.

“Oh yeah, yeah I can imagine how that conversation would go. Hi Malfoy! We’ve only been on speaking terms for two days but now I can’t stop thinking about you and you turned me in to a trembling mess with one touch of your hand this morning and now I’m in a complete state wondering if I’m gay – can you help?”

Realising his words Harry groaned again and lowered his head back on to the desk. There as a few moments silence before Hermione leaned towards him and whispered in his ear,

“I would perhaps word it a little differently, but I definitely think you need to talk to him Harry. He’ll understand what you’re going through and be able to help.” With that she kissed him gently on the top of his head and leant back, taking out her books and making a start on his essay.

He should have known by now that she was always right.

He pulled out his books and stared at a blank piece of parchment for almost half an hour without even opening his books. Hermione was working away at his side, turning occasionally with a rather stern face reminding Harry of McGonagall.

"If you're not going to actually do any work Harry why not go and do something productive." She snapped.

"Like what?" He asked, wondering whether to go up and get his broom and go for a fly. That always cleared his head. But he doubted Hermione would class that as productive.

"Well sitting her watching me study isn't going to help get your head straight is it?" She said, without looking up from her work.

In the end he gave up attempting his transfiguration essay and fished inside his bag for his map.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good" he whispered and he heard Hermione tutting under her breath. 

He often perused his map when boredom took him and watched the little dots moving about the castle, unaware that their movements were being spied on. This time of night after dinner most of the students were in their respective common rooms or doing homework in the library. Harry watched as the tiny dot labelled "Peeves" roamed up and down a corridor on the seventh floor and wondered what mayhem he was causing. His eyes flickered as they had done so many times in the past to the Slytherin common room, in search for a certain Slytherin in particular. After searching for a moment Harry couldn't see the dot labelled Draco Malfoy and frowning to himself he began searching the rest of the map.

After a couple of minutes he finally spotted him - in the potions classroom, alone?. Curiosity immediately gripped Harry. What was Malfoy up to? Without thinking he quickly threw his stuff inside his bag, tapping the map quietly before stuffing it back inside his bag.

"Mischief managed." He whispered and Hermione looked up from her essay which was well over a foot long now and even in his haste Harry couldn't help but be impressed.

"Found him then?" She asked, looking back down at her text book. She can bloody read minds Harry thought to himself. How does Ron cope?

"Yeah." He said as he stood, deciding there was no point lying to her. "See you back at the common room."

And he was off, sprinting down the main staircase, darting across the entrance hall and down the stone steps to the dungeons.

With no actual plan of what he would do once he got there he didn't stop until he was outside Slughorn’s classroom where he found the door slightly ajar, light trickling out into the corridor. He paused for a moment and caught his breath. He had no idea what he was doing, or what he was going to say. He seemed to be moving without conscious thought. All he knew was the only person he wanted to see at that moment was Malfoy.


	17. Chapter Eighteen

Glancing at his watch Draco realised he’d been down in Slughorn’s classroom for almost an hour now. His potion was bubbling away outside and he was now gathering supplies from a list he had made the morning of Potter's arrival on to the Hospital Wing. He remembered taking inventory that morning and he seemed like a lifetime ago. It was only two days before and Draco’s world had been shaken so much in the meantime it seemed impossible that everything that had happened had been squeezed in to 48 short hours.

In the very grand scheme of things he reasoned with himself, not an awful not had happened. To an outsider looking in, it wouldn’t have looked like anything of great interest to see two boys sat together, drinking hot chocolate late at night, confiding in one another about relationships, laying to rest old grudges. But to Draco it meant more to him than anything ever had done before.  
He thought back to earlier that morning and imagined what anyone would have seen if they’d have looked over to see him and Potter sat next to each other, side by side at the back of the class. Would it have been obvious that Draco’s heart was dancing and his nerves had been ablaze? He remembered the thrills that had ran through him when Potter's leg had brushed up against his. Smiling to himself he scanned the shelves looking for boomslang. He reached up and picked a vile off the top shelf and placed it into the basket on the floor beside him and looked at it was crossed off the list, suspended in front of him.

He thought coming down here with a task to occupy his mind would help him to stop thinking about Potter. But he couldn’t get the images of his bright green eyes, burning with something Draco was terrified to identify in case he was wrong. Blaise seemed confident that Potter was gay, and he had to admit all the facts did seem to agree. He was just wondering how he could approach the subject with Potter, how he could orchestrate a situation for them to be alone again when a voice from behind startled him.

“Interesting shopping list.” Said the very same voice that had filled Draco’s thoughts all day. He spun around to see Potter standing in the doorway to the store cupboard, his hands in his pockets, his hair its usual ruffled mess, looking achingly gorgeous. Draco felt a smile spread across his face. Merlin, it must be so obvious how he felt, he couldn’t seem to hide the effect Potter had on him.

"What are you doing down here Potter?” he asked, aware suddenly of how isolated the classroom was from the rest of the castle. He trembled slightly as a shiver ran up his spine.

“Thought I’d come down and see what you were up to all alone in the potions classroom at night?” Potter replied, stepping into the cupboard and leaning casually against the shelf to his right. He looked so relaxed and sexy, Draco’s mouth began to water and he swallowed hard.

“How did you know I was down here?” he asked, wondering wildly if Blaise had sent him, “and that I was alone?” Did Potter want to get Draco alone? Had this been intentional? His blood seemed to pumping around his body at such a ferocious speed and it was making him dizzy.

“Magic.” Potter replied with a smile that made Draco’s stomach tighten. Was he flirting? Draco shook his head, trying to reign in his senses. Don’t get carried away he told himself.

“Well seen as you’re here you can help me.” He said, sounding much calmer than he felt at Potter's sudden appearance. “I’m picking up stores for Madame Pomfrey.” He went on and nodded in the direction of the list.

Potter walked further into the small cupboard and the air around them seemed to become thick, Draco felt hot and clammy. He tried to concentrate on the list, but his mind was reeling. This was the perfect opportunity to approach the subject of Potter being gay. How could he mention it without upsetting him?   
He grabbed a jar of lacewing flies and dropped them into the basket, watching Potter as he scanned the shelves. Would he become angry at him if he mentioned anything? It dawned on him suddenly that Potter had sought him out. He had come to find Draco, Maybe he wanted to talk about Draco’s comments that morning? Had he finally worked out what his type was?

“So, was there a particular reason you wanted to see me Potter?” he asked, hoping he sounded casual. He reached up to grab a bottle of doxy eggs with his back to Potter.

“No, nothing in particular.” He heard him answer although he sounded distracted.  
Draco suddenly remembered watching Potter leave the Great Hall a short while ago with Granger, looking troubled.

“You seemed upset earlier, Is everything okay?” he asked as he bent down to a bottom shelf, peering up at Potter who quickly looked away, perusing the list. He looked nervous. Draco felt the butterflies in his stomach colliding as they fluttered about, excited.

“Upset?” Potter said, frowning at the list, “When?”

Draco stood up, facing the list and was now shoulder to shoulder with Potter. He felt the same charge vibrating between them he had felt earlier on in the classroom just the other side of the door.

“I saw you leaving the hall with Granger and you looked upset or wound up about something.” Draco explained. He realised he had admitted to watching Potter during dinner and reached up to grab the asphodel off the top shelf to hide his blush. Potter reached up at the same time and their hands brushed gently before Potter tore his arm back, running his hands through his hair as to mask his reaction. Had he felt it too Draco wondered? The heat that seemed to flare whenever they touched?  
Throwing the bottle gently into the basket and trying not to look at Potter's disheveled hair, he went on.

“What were you so upset over?” he asked tentatively, with no idea whether Potter would tell him to sod off and mind his own business. 

He came to find you, he reminded himself.

“Just something Ron and Hermione had said.” He said quietly, still staring at the list. He glanced around suddenly, looking for the last thing on the list. Draco eyes moved to look – bezoars.

“Why, what did they say?” he asked, his voice brimming with curiosity. He turned to check the shelves behind for the Bezoars. He heard Potter clear his throat behind him and turned to look at him. He was looking at Malfoy with that burning look again and Malfoy ran his tongue along his bottom lip, looking at Potter's mouth distractedly. His lips looked so soft, his mouth was open slightly, invitingly…

“Well, it turns out Hermione thinks I’m gay…” Potter suddenly blurted out.   
Draco’s heart stopped beating. Potter seemed startled by his own words and his eyes began frantically scanning the shelves again, still searching for the bezoars. Draco spotted them above Potter's head.

“Right,” he managed to mumble, as his heart began again, beating at twice its normal speed.

“And what did you have to say about that?” he went on tentatively. He came to find you, he told himself again, as he took a small step towards Potter. He couldn’t meet Draco’s gaze and was peering down at the shelves as he answered,

“I told her I don’t think I am.” He answered. 

That wasn’t a no Draco noted.

He came to find you.

Draco’s heart had left his body. He couldn’t feel it beating. He couldn’t feel anything. The store cupboard vanished and all he could see was Potter.

“You don’t think you are? That would imply you are not really sure Potter?” his voice was barely a whisper. His breath caught in his chest as Potter looked up in to his eyes for the first time. He looked absolutely petrified and was so beautiful in his vulnerability. Draco felt a lump rise in his throat.

“Well, how are you meant to know? Just because I’m not interested in any of the girls doesn’t mean I’m gay? Does it? Being crap at the whole dating/girl thing doesn’t mean I must like boys?.”

Draco took a deep breath and watched as Potter did the same. He came to find you, he told himself again.

“How did you know you were gay?” Potter asked, turning his head back to look at Draco, his eyes wide. His breath hitched as he caught Draco’s gaze. Draco felt they had fallen into a furnace. The heat around them swirled making his head spin.

“Well, you’re not interested in girls? He asked, taking a step closer to Potter.  
“No” he answered simply. Draco’s heart fluttered.

“What about any of the boys in school? Have any of them caught your attention?” he asked, taking another step closer, elated when Potter didn’t move or flinch.

He came to find you.

“I've never really looked at any of the boys before…” Potter whispered, sounding hoarse, his voice shaking.

“It only takes one to capture your attention Potter.” He told him, fighting the overwhelming urge to press his mouth to Potter's. He was close enough now. All he would have to do is lean over slightly.  
“So, that’s how you knew?” Potter whispered, and Draco thought he saw Potter's eyes move fleeting to Draco’s mouth. 

Does he want me to kiss him? 

He came to find you he told himself again.

“You started liking a boy?”

“Yes.” Draco whispered. He could feel Potter's breath across his face now, he swallowed thickly.

“Who? Is he gay as well?” Potter asked, his breath hot, fast, and colliding with Draco’s own.

“I think so,” Draco purred, “he just hasn’t realised it yet.” He blinked and lost his nerve at the last minute, reaching up over Harry's head and pulling down the box of bezoars, handing it to Potter.

"Or has he?" He added.

As he looked back into Potter's eyes he saw that same burning look and finally acknowledged – it was lust. He wanted to kiss Draco. The tip of his nose was almost brushing against Potter's and all he could see in front of him was a sea of deep green, lost in the pools of Potter's eyes. Blood rushed below his waist as Potter looked down at his mouth, wanting the kiss as much as Draco did.

“Malfoy…?” Potter whispered as he tilted his head slightly to the side. Draco brought his trembling hand up and found Potter's, linking their fingers together, feeling Potter's hand tremble inside his own.

“Potter…”he moaned as he watched the green pools in front of him flutter and close, and Draco closed his own eyes as he breathed in the smell of Potter, soap and something vanilla. His breath hitched as he moved to press his lips on to Potter's –  
“Mr Malfoy, are you still here m’boy?”

Draco almost leapt out of his own skin as Slughorn’s voice boomed into the cupboard, and the magic surrounding he and Potter crashed around them. He heard a thump and looked up as Potter rubbed the back of his head,  
“Shit.” he’d stumbled back into the shelves. He looked completely undone and Draco realised he must look the same.

“In here sir.” He managed to say and his voice sounded strange, it was too high pitched. He grabbed the basket off the floor and picked the parchment from mid-air, slinging it inside. As he made to leave the cupboard he looked at Potter, who was frozen, still rubbing the back of his head. He was overcome with a rush of emotions. He wanted to kiss him fiercely and hug him gently all at the same time. He reached out and gently tugged on the bottom of Potter's tie and said,

“Come on Potter.”

As he walked out into the classroom Slughorn was at his desk, organising some papers. He smiled at Draco and didn’t seem at all curious when Potter ambled out of the store cupboard behind him. In a blind panic Draco wondered if it were obvious from the look on his face what they had been doing. Then he reminded himself nothing had actually happened and his stomach dropped in disappointment.  
He picked up his robes and tie from the desk and slung his bag over his shoulder. He had a reckless urge to throw something at Slughorn’s head for his incredible timing. Gaining control of himself he quickly explained he would be back in the morning to collect the potion he’d left brewing before making his way over to the door. Potter followed quietly behind him without saying a word to Slughorn. As they walked out of the classroom Draco glanced over to the desk he and Potter had shared that morning before Potter closed the door quietly behind them.

“Something in the air in that classroom today I think.” He heard himself say.  
The corridor felt cold and empty compared to the intense heat that had filled the cupboard moments ago. But as Potter joined him at his side and they began walking up the stone passageway together, both smiling quietly, some of the warmth returned, wrapping around Draco’s heart like a hug.


	18. Chapter Nineteen

As they made their way up the stone passageway Harry's head was spinning. He had almost kissed Draco Malfoy. In a closet of all places. The irony was not lost on him. He was still trembling slightly and took a deep breath, glancing at Malfoy who was walking beside him. A thousand emotions seemed to be colliding inside Harry at the moment. He had wanted to kiss Malfoy, to feel his lips, warm and wet on his. If this meant that he was gay then that was suddenly fine with Harry. 

Malfoy had seemed to want the kiss as much as he did. When he took Harry's hand it was shaking just as much as Harry's. Remembering Malfoy hadn’t sounded at all surprised when he told him his friends thought he was gay Harry's stomach lurched. Was he the last one to realise? Malfoy's words were repeated in his mind.

“What about any of the boys in school? Have any of them caught your attention? … It only takes one….”

Harry had to agree. He could honestly say he’d never looked at another boy, or anyone for that matter the way he had looked at Malfoy. There was something alluring about Malfoy he had never noticed before – with a start Harry realized the word the he was searching for. Sexy. Malfoy was sexy.

He’d never experienced the feelings with anyone else either. With just one look Malfoy would set Harry's nerves alight. A current seemed to be vibrating beteen them and Harry still had goose bumps from being so close to Malfoy inside the tiny cupboard.

He looked up and noticed they were at the end of the corridor. The Slytherin common room was down to the left. He paused and looked at Malfoy for the first time. He was frowning and his face was still flushed.

“This is you then?” Harry said, feeling a bit pathetic. He felt he should have come up with something better to say but this was the best he could do in his current state. He nodded down the corridor in the direction of the Slytherin common room which he knew was further down and to the right.

“What’s me?” Malfoy asked, stopping in front of Harry who had come to a standstill.

“Your common rooms down that way.” Harry replied feeling immensely awkward. He sounded like he wanted Malfoy to leave – but he didn’t. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and shuffled uncomfortably on his feet.

“I need to take these up to the Hospital Wing for - how do you know that?” Malfoy suddenly asked, his eyebrows arched suspiciously. Harry found himself smiling as he remembered following Malfoy in to the common room 6 years before, disguised as Goyle.

“Well it was down there and to the right last time I visited.” He explained, relishing the look of absolute confusion on Malfoy's face.

“Visited? You’re insinuating you’ve been inside our common room Potter?” he asked disbelievingly. Shaking his head suddenly he added,

“That’s absolutely impossible - There’s no way. You’re winding me up.”

“I’m not. I’ve been inside with Ron. It was you who showed us in.”

“Excuse me? I’m fairly certain that is not something I would forget.” he said and Harry recognised some of the old Malfoy drawl in his voice.

“Come on, I’ll walk up to the Hospital Wing with you to drop this off,” Harry said pointing at the basket in Malfoy's hands.

“I might let you in on how we managed to trick you into letting us in on the way.” Harry said playfully. It was astonishing how easy they seemed to slip back into comfort with one another after these embarrassing situations. Despite feeling awkward and confused about their almost kiss he wasn’t ready to bid Malfoy goodnight just yet.

They made their way up to the Hospital Wing and Harry told Malfoy the tale of the polyjuice potion he, Ron and Hermione had brewed back in second year in a bid to gain entry into the Slytherin common room. Once he was finished Malfoy stared at him looking torn between anger and reluctant admiration.

“Well Potter I must say, for a bunch of Gryffindor’s that was very Slytherin of you.” He mused, smiling in spite of himself. They were outside the doors to the Hospital Wing and as he pushed them open, Harry stepped inside and waited holding the door open. He watched as Malfoy made his way over to the cupboard at the far end of the ward and placed the basket inside. Madame Pomfrey was not around and the ward was empty. Harry's eyes were drawn to the bed at the very end of the ward under the high arched windows where he has spent the night talking with Malfoy 2 nights ago. He smiled as he remembered and as he looked up Malfoy was walking towards him with a similar expression.

“Seems like months ago you were in here with your leg doesn’t it, it was only 2 nights ago.” He said as he approached Harry and made to walk out of the doors.

“I was just thinking the same thing.” Harry admitted and stepped in to the corridor so Malfoy could close the doors to the ward. He realised he was out of excuses to spend more time with Malfoy, he would be heading back to the common room now and Harry felt a pang of disappointment.

“Thanks for everything by the way, when I was on the ward.” He said quickly, looking in to Malfoy's eyes. They looked back at Harry and he again felt like they were seeing right into him.

“I didn’t do anything…” Malfoy answered, his voice sounded hoarse. Harry wanted to thank him for laying the past to rest so easily, for making Harry feel warmer and happier than he had in a long while, for awakening something in Harry that was making him feel things he had never felt before. He hadn’t quite worked out what it was Malfoy had awakened just yet, but he had a feeling when he did, it was going to shake his whole world. Unable to convert this into any form of coherent words instead he heard himself saying,

“Well you made an excellent cup of hot chocolate.” He said as he leaned against the wall. He didn’t want to start walking again, he wanted to stay here, in Malfoy's company a little longer.  
Malfoy laughed loudly and it made Harry's heart flutter. He leaned against the wall next to him, shoulder to shoulder.

“I’ve literally got the t-shirt to prove it,” he joked, “I couldn’t get the stains out after you spat all over me.”.

Harry felt his stomach lurch again.

“Yeah, sorry about that.” He mumbled, fresh waves of embarrassment washing over him as he remembered.

“It’s okay,” Malfoy said quietly. “I imagine it was quite a shock.”

“Yeah. Not because I’m, you know, bothered or anything. Just because, well I didn’t know.” Harry was stuttering now and he was glad Malfoy couldn’t see his face. They were both looking down at their feet as they spoke.

“You’re not bothered at all that I am gay?” Malfoy asked quietly, with a hint of something in his voice...

“No not at all.” Harry answered quickly. 

He was abruptly aware of the same heat bursting to life between them again. They were only touching gently shoulder to shoulder. Harry's hands were inside his pockets and he took them out and rested them by his sides. He could feel Malfoy's hand inches away from his own.

“Are you surprised at how quickly we’ve managed to put everything behind us?” Malfoy asked suddenly and Harry turned his head slightly to look at him. He was looking down at the floor, chewing on his bottom lip.

“Yeah, I guess it was pretty easy in the end.” Harry answered slowly.

“Why do you think that is?” Malfoy asked, and Harry felt his hand twitch closer to his.

“I don’t know.” Harry replied, he thought about it for a moment before adding,

“We just seem to understand each other.” He said.

“With everything we both went through with The Dark Lord you mean?” Malfoy asked.

“Yeah, I suppose.” He said.

“I never really hated you, you know.” Malfoy said suddenly.

“I hated you.” Harry told him truthfully.

“And now?” Malfoy turned so his shoulder was leaning against the wall and he was facing Harry's profile. In one swift move he had caused the heat to erupt and now 

Harry's thoughts were scattered again. He remained still, facing away from the wall.

“I don’t hate you anymore.” He told him honestly.

“We're friends now?” Malfoy asked, and Harry could feel his gaze scorching. He tipped his head to the side and burned under Malfoy's stare.

"Yeah, I suppose we are." He mused, and he couldn't help his eyes flickering down to Malfoy's mouth.

As they stood lost in each other's eyes, a clattering noise seemed to be approaching along the corridor heading in their direction. They both leaned up off the wall and turned to look. They couldn't see anything but Harry had a good idea what the noises were.

"Peeves." He whispered to Malfoy and grabbed his hand quickly pulling him off into the opposite direction.

"Quick this way." Harry said dragging Malfoy towards a tapestry across the hall, behind which Harry knew was a hidden shortcut down a narrow stone staircase.

They tore across the hallway, Harry pulled open the concealed door and pushed Malfoy inside, shoving him against the wall as he pulled the door closed quickly.  
He turned and in his haste, was suddenly chest to chest with Malfoy pressed up against the wall. His breath hitched and he looked up into Malfoy's face, which was glowing softly in the dim light of the torches burning further down the narrow passageway.

They were almost nose to nose again, Harry had one hand on Malfoy's chest, the other still holding Malfoy's hand from dragging him.

"Are you man handling me Potter?" Malfoy whispered as his hot breath blew across Harry's face, sending shivers down his spine.

"Sorry.." He managed to say and he would have been embarrassed as his voice quivered but he was too overcome with lust to care.

Malfoy squeezed his hand gently and moved his head slightly to the right, his nose brushing Harry's. As he watched Malfoy's eyes flutter closed Harry threw all caution aside and tipped his head, bringing his mouth to Draco’s and pressing their lips softly together. It was soft and gently, hesitant, yet Harrys body suddenly burned as waves of lust rolled through him.

Harry's senses exploded and he felt every nerve in his body vibrating as he leant closer, his body now flush with Malfoy's. Drawing a sharp intake of breath through his nose he parted his lips slightly and his stomach jolted as Malfoy did the same, brushing his tongue lightly across Harry's bottom lip. Harry slowly pushed his own tongue out to meet Malfoy's and the heat intensified, the kiss deepened. Malfoy's other hand was suddenly sliding up Harry's chest, snaking over his neck and up in to his hair, pulling Harry closer, deepening the kiss.

Harry's knees felt weak, all the blood was rushing to his groin and as Malfoy's tongue lapped at his own he heard a small moan of pleasure escape his own mouth. Malfoy's breath hitched at the sound and his hand gripped Harry's hair tightly. Stroking his own hand across Malfoy's chest, Harry could feel his smooth sculptured muscles.

He had never had a kiss like this before. His whole body was alive, blood pounding through his veins and setting his nerves alight. With a jolt in his stomach he realised most of his blood had gone south and he felt his cock harden as Malfoy's body pushed up against him. Moving his hand up to cup Malfoy's face he pulled him in closer, wanting to devour him, wanting him closer, still not close enough.

Their mouths were moving faster and the sound of their breathing and panting was whipping them both into a frenzy.

Finally pulling back to catch his breath, Harry looked into Malfoy's eyes which were scorching with a hot, lustful craving. Pressing one last tender kiss to Malfoy's lips 

Harry let out a deep low breath, his hand still cupping Malfoy's face.

"Potter?" Malfoy whispered, sounded just as undone as Harry.

"Yes?"

"Kissing or hugging?" He whispered.

Smiling, with his lips feeling swollen and tingling and wonderful Harry ran his thumb gently across Malfoy's cheek.

"Kissing." He answered pulling Malfoy closer and resting their foreheads together. Definitely kissing.


	19. Chapter Twenty

Draco dared not move for fear of frightening the magic right out of Potter once it dawned on him what they’d just done. Draco’s mind was spinning. He had kissed Harry Potter. And it had been head spinning, toe curling amazing. He was trying to steady his breath which was all over the place when he felt Potter's thumb gently stroking small circles across his knuckles. It calmed Draco immediately although his heart was still beating wildly. He slowly opened his eyes to look at Potter as he felt his hand move away from Draco’s face. Potter placed his hand behind Draco’s head on the wall and leaned forward slightly, his eyes still shut. His breathing was just as laboured as Draco’s and his hand was trembling slightly – or was that Draco’s hand shaking? He couldn’t tell.

He held his breath and Potter leant back, opening his eyes slowly and drawing in a deep breath. As their eyes met Draco’s stomach somersaulted. Potter's eyes were alight with the same lust Draco knew must be showing in his own face. He didn’t look like he regretted their kiss. Quite the opposite. He looked like he had enjoyed it.

“You okay?” Potter whispered, his voice shaking and sending shivers right through Draco. He seemed just as undone as Draco felt.

“Yeah. Never better.” He replied in complete honesty. He never knew he could feel so good. Potter smiled back at him and relief crashed through Draco as he tentatively spoke, “You?”

“Fine. Great actually.”

A surge of emotions swelled up inside Draco and came to a head somewhere in his chest. He felt ready to burst and took another deep breath, attempting to compose himself. He was still holding Potter's hand and he didn’t want to let go. As Potter stood up straight, Draco couldn’t stop the grin that was spreading out across his face. With a firm grip on Potter's hand he steadied his nerves and managed to find his voice again properly.

“Looks like Granger was right again then Potter?” and as he laughed loudly Draco’s heart hummed. It was becoming his favourite sound – Potter laughing. Especially when it was with Draco at something he had said.

“She always is.” Potter said, running his hand through his hair. He looked so breathtakingly handsome, Draco couldn’t fathom why they had stopped kissing? His lips tingled at the memory of Potter's mouth pressed to his and he felt his blood surge again. He quickly pushed himself off from the wall and tried to regain his composure less he jump on top of Potter and show him what manhandling really was.

“How the hell did you know this passageway was here?” he asked, suddenly curios. He must have passed this tapestry a hundred times and was completely unaware of the narrow stone steps hidden the other side.

“That would be telling.” Potter replied mischievously as Draco peered down the stairwell. He could feel Potter's gaze still on him but he tried hard not to return his look, certain he would lose control of himself again. He wasn’t sure he was ready for Potter to see the full effect he was having on him - not just yet.

“Where does it lead?” he asked, picking up their bags which had been thrown unceremoniously on to the floor as they clattered into the passageway moments before. He passed Potter his bag and slung his own over his shoulder, careful not to let go of Potter's other hand in his.

“Half way up the 2nd floor corridor near Flitwick’s classroom. We can get to the main staircase from there.” Potter explained, taking his bag from Draco and seeming more than happy to continue their handholding. He began descending the steps and Draco followed quietly. It did occur to him that it should feel odd, holding hands with Harry Potter while wandering the secret passageways of the castle at night but it didn’t. Draco had never felt so safe, so happy, and so certain that this was exactly where he should be and exactly what he should be doing.

He panicked as he realised it must be really late. Turning his wrist up to look at his watch, keeping a tight grip on Potter's hand he was surprised to see it was almost midnight. Time clearly does fly when you’re having fun.

“It’s almost 11:30pm.” He whispered to Potter who was walking silently beside him. “We’ve had it if we’re found out of the dorms Potter.” 

He doubted even being found with “The Chosen One” would help him avoid the wrath of McGonagall. She had no tolerance for rule breaking – from anyone.

“We’ll have to be careful not to get caught then won't we? Come here.” He said as he tugged on Draco’s hand and pulled him closer before leaning into his bag and pulling out a travelling cloak. It was a strange, watery material and seemed light as air as it slipped through Potter's fingers.

“Under here.” Potter whispered and distracted at their sudden closeness again Draco didn’t realise at first that they were suddenly invisible.

“So it’s true then? You do have a cloak of invisibility?” he said, unable to hide the amazement in his own voice.

“Shh, it makes you invisible not silent.” Potter whispered as he pushed open the door at the bottom of the stairwell. As he peered around the door he leaned forwards slightly, and Draco couldn’t stop his eyes wandering down to Potter's arse. He let his eyes travel all the way up Potter from behind and felt himself moving without conscious thought, leaning into Potter and breathing in the scent of his hair. He used every ounce of self-control he could find not to turn Potter around to face him and deliver a hot, abandoned kiss on his mouth.

“Right, come on, quietly.” Potter whispered and pulled Draco out in to the corridor by his hand.

“I’ll walk you back to the dungeons to your common room under the cloak.” He explained, and disappointment swept through Draco. He couldn’t think of any more reasons to stay with Potter so he answered reluctantly,

“Right, okay.

The only (sort of) person they passed on the way was the Bloody Baron as he floated menacingly through the wall into the Great Hall. Draco shuddered as he always did when he was close to the Baron - or was it because he was still holding hands with Potter?  
They crossed the entrance hall to the door leading down to the dungeons,

"Come on quietly, Filch could be anywhere." He whispered to Potter as they walked down the steep stairwell. The castle was so quiet without the usual bustle of students and Draco found it eerie.

They approached the corner just before the Slytherin common room and paused, before dipping into an alcove to hide as Potter pulled the cloak from around them. The butterflies in Draco’s stomach began dancing again. He felt a nervous awkwardness and began bouncing slightly on the balls of his feet. 

He really wanted to kiss Potter goodnight. To pull him in, hold him close, and breath in that gorgeous Potter scent. But he was afraid he would look desperate and clingy. He didn't want Potter to know just how badly he wanted him. The silence drew out, making Draco more nervous. He broke it by asking,

"You gonna be okay getting back up?" Of course he would be. He's Harry bloody Potter.

"Yeah I'll be fine." Potter said sounding distracted. He gave Draco one last burning look, before grabbing him suddenly by the front of his robes and kissing him hard and hot on the mouth. He meant business this time and there was no cautiousness or shyness as he teased Draco’s mouth open, massaging their tongues together in a fast, relentless pace.

Draco was suddenly aware that so far, Potter had made all the moves, took the lead, with Draco a submissive participant: wanting to give just as good as he got he stepped towards Potter and pushed him into the wall, running his hands up over Potter's chest, resisting the urge to dig his nails into the flesh beneath the thin layer of clothes. He was lost in a haze of burning lasciviousness, an animal instinct suddenly taking over. He wanted Potter so badly his bones felt as though they were vibrating. He knotted his hands in to Potter's hair, pulling him closer, deepening the kiss, craving Potter's taste and touch as if were air to his lungs.

He was aware of Potter's hands on his hips and his cock was throbbing, when Potter thrust hard, their pelvises crashing together. He felt Potters erection, hard and swollen against his own and the tension coiling in his bones vibrated. It almost tipped Draco over the edge and he heard an unabashed groan escape his mouth. At least he thought it was him who made the sound. He could barely sense reality as Potter gently sucked his bottom lip, causing Draco’s cock to stiffen further, bumping and pushing against Potter's as they thrust hungrily in to each other. The thought of Potter's cock, hard and pulsing against his own was too much and Draco caught himself just before he slipped over the edge…

Pulling himself back he looked at Potter's face and was amazed that the same salacious look was burning in his eyes. He licked his lips, tasting Potter and taking a deep breath to steady himself. He's almost blew his load in his pants from a bit of dry humping. He knew he was blushing.

"Merlin Potter..." He managed to say, his voice was broken and he knew he was visibly trembling.

"I’d better get going." Potter murmured and Draco was thrilled to hear his voice sounds hoarse and broken. Could he possibly be feeling just as overwhelmed as Draco? 

As Potter gently pushed Draco back by his hips and into the middle of the corridor he felt a jolt in his pelvis again. His body was working at his own pace - reacting wildly to Potter's every touch.

"Right, best not push our luck." He replied with a small smile and leant in towards those astounding green eyes and placed a soft, lingering kiss on Potter's swollen pink lips, his hands gently cupping Potter's face. 

As he pulled back he looked deep in to those eyes and he felt a surge of emotion rise up again, beating at his heart. He knew what it was. He knew where this was going. He could hold on for a little longer but he knew he would have to surrender eventually and let himself fall.

"Goodnight Harry." He whispered.

He heard Harry take a sharp intake of breath. He'd never used his given name before. But things had changed. Draco had changed. And it was Potter - Harry - who had changed him.

"Goodnight Draco." Harry whispered back as he threw the cloak over himself and disappeared.

Draco turned and made his way down the corridor. 

Yes, he thought, I can hold on a little longer. But he would have to let go in the end and allow himself to fall for Harry.


	20. Chapter Twenty-One

Harry awoke the next morning and his first thought was of Malfoy - Draco - and his deep charcoal eyes and hot sweet kisses. He had lay awake for at least an hour once he got back to the dorm after kissing Malfoy goodnight. Every nerve in his body was on overdrive and adrenaline was coursing through his veins.

He felt he had been awoken from a stupor, a zombie-like state he hadn't even been aware he was in. Three days ago he was plodding along trying to find some sense of normality since returning to school and now he was having a sexual awakening with someone he thought he had hated. 

He sat up and stretched widely and rubbed his eyes, looking around the dorm. Dean and Seamus were already up and out, their beds empty. Neville roused as Harry stumbled out of bed and rummaged for his wash bag.

"Morning Harry." Neville yawned as he sat up and threw the covers back.

"Morning Nev." Harry said brightly. 

"Herbology first lesson today - nice day for it." He said as he glanced over out the window. It looked like a bright crisp day and he knew it was Neville's favourite subject. Harry wasn’t usually so eager but they just happened to have Herbology with the Slytherins…

"Blimey you're in a good mood this morning Harry." Ron mumbled from under his covers, emerging with his hair on end and his eyes still closed. 

"No reason not to be." Harry said simply.

Neville dragged himself out of bed and wandered off to the bathroom. As Harry started pulling his robes and uniform out of his trunk Ron sat up and swung his legs out of the bed.

"Did you find him then?" He asked quietly, throwing a cautious look over at the door to the bathroom.

Harry's stomach jolted. 

"Who?" He asked, knowing perfectly well who Ron meant.

"Malfoy." Ron answered. "Hermione said you went off looking for him last night and you were out late." He went on, rubbing his hands over his face trying to wake his muscles up.

Harry bent low over his trunk to hide his blush.

"Yeah, he was down in Slughorn’s room getting some bits for the hospital ward." He said, hoping he sounded casual. His blood was pumping as he recalled the events of the previous night and he felt his lips tingle at the memory of Malfoy's mouth on his.

"Did you talk to him?" Ron asked.

"Yeah." Harry replied honestly. They had talked, and kissed. And talked some more. And kissed a little more.

"And...? Did you mention, you know, what we were talking about yesterday?" Ron asked, obviously referring to their conversation about Harry's sexual identity crisis.

"It came up." Harry said vaguely. He turned and looked at Ron to see his eyebrows were raised and he looked like he was holding back a grin.

"We kissed." He blurted out and resisted a laugh as Ron’s jaw went slack.

"Blimey Harry." He exclaimed, "You weren’t even sure you were gay 24 hours ago and now you're telling me you've snogged a boy – and it was Malfoy?" He said, shaking his head. 

"It just sort of happened." Harry tried to explain. He thought he should spare Ron the intimate details of the sudden, raw, animalistic lust that seemed to overpower him whenever Malfoy touched him.

"I helped him out with some stuff for the Hospital Wing and told him what you and Hermione had said and one thing sort of led to another and we kissed." He finished.   
He knew he was blushing but he kept his eyes firmly on Ron's face, wanting to read his reaction.

The only emotion he could detect was amusement. Trust Ron to immediately find the funny side.

"Right. And how was it?" He asked, scrunching his nose up at the prospect of a discussion about Malfoy and kissing.

How was it? How on earth was Harry supposed to describe how kissing Malfoy had been? Earth shattering? Bone tingling? Head spinning?

"Was nice." He heard himself say.  
"  
Nice?" Ron asked. "You kissed the ferret and it was 'nice'?" 

"Yeah." Harry responded. He walked around his bed and sat on the edge, facing Ron, swinging his wash bag by its draw string down between his knees. In all honesty his kiss with Malfoy was the best moment of his life and he was terrified of the feelings that had suddenly emerged from nowhere.   
"So, that's that then? Definitely gay?" Ron asked, looking at Harry with a small smile. Harry was suddenly so thankful for his best friend, who stuck by him through absolutely anything. And for his uncanny ability to simplify almost any situation.

"Yeah. Looks like." He replied. 

"Should have known Hermione would be right - again." Ron said as he stood and stretched his arms over his head. He clapped Harry on the back and made his way in to the bathroom.

Assuming that that was the conversation over with Harry laughed to himself and got up to get himself ready. Ron was never one to over-dramatize things.

Once they were washed and dressed they made their way down to breakfast, meeting Hermione along the way. She never mentioned the night before in the busy crowds of student but once they were sat at the end of the Gryffindor table with nobody in ear shot she lowered her head and have Harry a meaningful look as she asked,

"So? What happened last night? Did you find Malfoy?"

"They kissed." Ron said suddenly and both Harry and Hermione spun their head around to look at him. 

"Git" thought Harry, half amused.

"Sorry?" said Hermione who was now blushing and looking at Harry.

"Bloody hell Ron." Harry laughed looking at his friend who was tucking in to his kippers as though nothing had happened.

"What? No point dancing around it all morning is there? She's gonna give you the third degree anyway mate so best cut to the chase, isn't it?" He said as he moved his attention back to his breakfast.

"I am not going to give Harry the third degree." Hermione hissed at him before she turned to look at Harry, clearly bursting with a hundred questions.

"Go on, you know you're dying to." Harry laughed.

"Well, did you kiss?" she asked, as her eyebrows rose in surprise.

"Yeah." Harry answered. 

"And did you enjoy it?" She went on.

"Course he did. Hasn't stopped grinning all morning has he?" Ron piped up.   
Hermione shot him an annoyed look before turning back to Harry.  
"Yeah, it was nice." He repeated the same answer he had given Ron. Hermione wasn't as easily satisfied however with vague responses.

"Who instigated it? Was it just a peck or like a full on kiss?" she asked.

Bloody hell girls think too much.

"Erm, we both sort of kissed each other the first time, but then I instigated it the second time." Harry recalled, his breath catching in his chest as he remembered pressing Malfoy into the wall. 

"Second time? How many times did you kiss?" Hermione asked.

"Twice."

"And they were full on snogs?"

"Suppose" Harry said, thinking if he'd snogged Ginny, then he would have to come up with a new name for whatever he and Malfoy had done.

"So, did you kiss him because you wanted to see what it was like to kiss a boy or is it something more?" She went on. Why was she always 10 steps ahead, thought Harry.

"What do you mean something more?" He asked, afraid of where this was now leading. He'd only just got his head around the fact he had enjoyed kissing Malfoy and now Hermione wanted to define it all and stick a label on it?

"Well, do you like him, or was it just an experimental thing? To see how you feel about being gay?" She asked.

"No it wasn’t an experimental thing?." He answered at once, feeling pricked by her assumption he had used Malfoy in some way.

"So you like him?" She went on.

"Merlin Hermione I don't know? I wasn't even sure I was gay this time yesterday. Can I just take this one step at a time?" He asked slightly exasperated.

"Of course." She said apologetically. 

"What do you think he thinks about it all?" She went on, clearly unable to stop herself.

"I have no idea." Harry answered honestly. He had lay awake all night thinking about what this all meant, and how Malfoy was feeling and eventually come to the conclusion he had no clue.

"I think you've had some sort of effect in him." Ron said suddenly between mouthfuls.

"What makes you say that?" Harry asked.

"Because he's just walked in, took one look this way and lost his concentration staring at you and knocked over a first year." He explained laughing at something over Harry's shoulder.

Harry spun around without thinking in time to see Malfoy helping a tiny first year girl up off the floor. His head snapped up and he caught Harry's eyes and his face flushed. 

As they looked at each other images of their kisses raced through Harry's mind and he couldn't help smiling. Malfoy pulled himself up and gave Harry a small but heart aching smile and nodded slightly in his direction in greeting before heading over the his own table.

Harry turned back to face Ron and Hermione, a smile still playing on his face. 

"Looks like you've got under each other's skins in a good way for once." Hermione said quietly as she picked up her newspaper and disappeared behind it.  
Harry looked at Ron who grinned at him and shrugged before turning back to his second helping of kippers.

As always Hermione was 100% right, Malfoy had gotten right under Harry's skin, into his very nerves setting them alight. Harry just hoped she was right about them both - and that he was having the same effect on Malfoy.


	21. Chapter Twenty-Two

As soon as Draco opened his eyes he knew he was excited about something. He had a flutter in his chest and an overwhelming urge to laugh. It took him a moment to remember why - then images flashed into his mind of him and Potter pressed up against each other, the feel of Potter's mouth crashing against his own. He sat up suddenly, a cocktail of adrenaline, nerves and excitement making it difficult to sit still all of a sudden.

He jumped out of bed and headed to the bathroom. As he pushed open the door Blaise was leaning against one of the sinks brushing his teeth. Theo passed him wrapped in a towel fresh out the shower and mumbled good morning on his way back into the dorms.

"Morning." Draco said and noted how chirpy he sounded. 

Blaise rinsed his mouth and looked at Draco for a moment before smiling and asking, “I’m guessing something happened with Potter last night?" 

How did he always manage to know exactly what was going on?

"Why do you say that?" Draco asked, pulling his own toothbrush out and setting about cleaning his own teeth.

"Well you haven't had a grin on your face like that since - well never to be perfectly honest but you came pretty close the other day when I told you Potter might be gay." Blaise said, leaning against the sink next to Draco and folding his arms.

"Also, I happened to have seen a speccy messy haired Gryffindor sprinting down towards Slughorn's classroom yesterday after dinner and he looked like he was running towards a sack of galleons." He went on. 

Draco kept his eyes lowered and concentrated on his teeth - but he knew he was blushing.

"And," Blaise went on sounding amused, "I know you were in Slughorn's classroom after dinner, alone. So - did he find you?" He asked.

Draco rinsed his mouth and looked up at his friend. He was bursting to tell someone how amazing he felt - but he couldn't seem to put it all into words -

"He found me." He replied, remembering the store cupboard and the heat he felt every time Potter was near him.

"And what did he want exactly? With you, alone in a deserted classroom?" Blaise asked with a devilish grin.

Fuck it Draco thought - he needed his friends’ opinion on what the hell might be going on and what exactly Draco was to do next;

"He told me about Granger and Weasley thinking he's gay. He wanted my advice. Turns out he is gay. And we kissed." He recapped briefly for Blaise, whose eyebrows had risen so far up his forehead they were almost at his hairline.

"Holy shit Draco." Blaise laughed. 

"Back up a little - how did you get from Potter's friends wondering if he is gay to the two of you kissing?" He asked.

Draco honestly had no idea. The whole night seemed like some amazing dream from someone's life. He gave Blaise a quick rundown of their conversation and how they'd ended up kissing when hiding from Peeves.

"And how was it?" Blaise asked when he finished.

Un-fucking-believable Draco thought.

"Good. Great. It was great." He said. He knew he'd sound ridiculous if he tried to explain to Blaise how incredible kissing Potter had been.

"Good. And did Potter seem like he enjoyed it?" Blaise asked. 

Draco's stomach back flipped. He thought Potter had seemed to enjoy their kiss. He had even instigated the second one. He was too scared to let himself believe Potter might be feeling anything close to what Draco himself was feeling but he was fairly certain he had at least enjoyed snogging him. He remembered their cocks bumping together and swallowed thickly.

"Yeah - he seemed to." He replied to Blaise who was staring at Draco with a mixture of happiness and concern.

"Make sure you both want the same thing Draco." He said suddenly. 

"What do you mean?" He asked, a sense of dread dropping through his stomach.

"Well, he's only just realising he is gay. This kiss may have been a test or something to see how kissing boys was. And we both know for you it was a lot more than that. Just be careful. I don't want you to get hurt" he said, squeezing Draco's shoulder before walking back to the dorms to get dressed.

Shit. Blaise was a few steps ahead of Draco - it hadn't even occurred to him that he may have just been an experiment for Potter - testing the waters so to speak to see if he did in fact like boys. He suddenly felt sick.

He thought back to their kisses and the lust and hunger in Potter's eyes. He felt at the time that Potter had wanted the kiss just as much as he did. But that was all just physical. Draco couldn't deny the emotions he felt whenever he thought of Potter and they had only increase tenfold overnight since kissing him.

He barely remembered getting dressed and walking down to the Great Hall as his mind raced with Blaise’s words. 

As he walked through the doors to the hall his head instinctively turned to the Gryffindor table and his eyes were drawn to a mess of black hair. Potter had his back to him talking to Granger. 

A thrill ran through Draco at the sight of Potter, his hair all messy and standing on end. He remembered running his hands through that hair and his breath quickened.  
He knew Blaise was right, he knew he was risking getting hurt, but he couldn't find it in him to care. Every stolen moment with Potter was worth a hundred broken hearts.

Whilst lost in his thoughts of Potter and staring unblinking at the back of his head Draco wasn't watching where he was going and he suddenly collided with something small and hard and was crashing to the floor with books scattering around him.   
He landed in a heap and realised he had taken a tiny, petrified looking first year with him. She looked at him with wide eyes and he jumped up as quickly as he could, hoping to God Potter hadn't turned in time to see him.

He pulled the tiny girl up and helped her pick up her books, apologising to her frightened little face. 

He straightened up and his head turned automatically in Potter's direction. His heart tried to escape out of his mouth as he realised Potter was looking at him.  
He could see those intense green eyes burning with the same look they had last night and his chest swelled. He couldn't stop a small smile spreading out over his face and was elated when Potter returned a soft smile, his eyes alight as he looked at Draco. 

Nodding in Potter's direction by way of greeting Draco turned and made his way over to his friends. 

He knew this could end badly. He knew Potter could just be enjoying snogging and want nothing more. But he also knew he couldn't walk away. Whatever Potter wanted from Draco, Draco knew he would give it. His heart was whispering what he already knew, he was just scared to admit. He was falling for Harry - he just had to hope Harry would be there to catch him.


	22. Chapter Twenty-Three

Harry had to resist the urge to run down the lawns towards the greenhouses as they made their way to Herbology after breakfast. He could see Draco a little further ahead with Blaise and Parkinson and Harry's stomach did little somersaults as the blonde head turned every few paces and glanced over his shoulder and back at Harry.

Each time they would catch each other's eye Draco would turn quickly away as if embarrassed at being caught. But Harry's heart was singing. He couldn't remember feeling in such a good mood in a long time. He felt giddy and a bubble of excitement was bouncing about in his stomach. He knew he had a stupid grin on his face but he didn’t care.

He remembered Hermione’s questions earlier on and he knew somewhere in the back of his mind this was more than just snogging. He couldn’t wait to just see Draco’s face, look in to his deep metallic eyes and see his face break out into a smile that made Harry’s bones melt. He felt that flutter of excitement of meeting someone new, but someone you already knew everything about. 

“You’re certainly eager this morning.” Hermione panted from beside Harry where she was jogging slightly to keep up with him. He heard a snort of laughter from Ron but didn’t turn to look.

“Don’t want to be late.” He replied, quickening his pace.

They reached Greenhouse Five just as Professor Sprout opened the doors and ushered them inside. As Harry, Ron and Hermione deposited their bags in the entrance porch Harry noticed a large station had been set up at the front of the room. Professor Sprout walked around to the back of the table and opened her arms wide,

"Gather around everyone, gather around. Make sure you can all see." She shouted over the noise as everyone deposited their bags and made their way inside.

It was no happy coincidence that Harry managed to find a spot at the side of the table which happened to be right next to Draco. He tried to ignore Ron's grin as he stood the other side of Harry and didn't look at him as he nudged Harry gently in the ribs.  
As Draco stepped close beside him to make room for the rest of the class gathered around he felt the same intense heat erupt in the small space between them.  
"Morning." He said quietly, and his eyes flickered side ways to see Draco was staring ahead, a faint blush working its way across his pale face and a small smile playing around his mouth. Tearing his eyes away from Draco’s red lips Harry was hit with a flood of flashbacks of his own mouth pressed against them.

"Morning Potter." Draco replied and he turned his head slightly to look in to Harry's face.

It was like a blow to Harry's stomach as they locked eyes and he suddenly forgot they were amongst a dozen or so other students. The desire to grab Draco and resume where they had left off in the deserted corridor the night before was overwhelming.

Taking a deep breath Harry looked to the front of the class and made an effort to concentrate on what Madame Sprout was saying. Or at least look as though he was.  
He was vaguely aware that she was demonstrating how to properly trim Tentacular leaves. His senses however where focused mainly on how close he and Draco were now standing. Their arms were pressed softly together and Harry could feel heat rolling off of Draco in waves which were crashing over Harry, heating him from the inside out.

He glanced quickly around the room and noticed everyone’s attention was on Madame Sprout. He inclined his head ever so slightly to his right towards Draco and inhaled that same intoxicating scent he had picked up the night before. He could feel his heart beginning to drum loudly in his chest and he was fighting a reckless urge to pull Draco close to him and hold him. He wanted to feel the warmth of Draco’s body pressed up against him, feel his hot breath over his face.

Without any conscious thought, aware that nobody would see, Harry's slowly slipped his hand inside Draco’s and linked their fingers together. Hidden within the folds of their robes their hands were not visible to anyone else. A secret embrace which made Harry's heart glow with warmth. Harry felt Draco’s hand tremble as he slowly traced his thumb over the top of his hand.

Something deep inside Harry's chest swelled and he felt his heart banging at his ribcage. Such a simple gesture, but standing here, holding hands discreetly with Draco, Harry felt a warmth flowing through his body. Draco gave Harry's hand a gentle squeeze and without saying a word, both boys had conveyed that the events of the night before had not been a dream, that they really had took place and had an effect on each of them. Harry leaned over ever so slightly against Draco, wanting to close the gap between them in any way he could. Draco’s gripped his hand tighter in response and Harry wondered if he was feeling the same surge of feelings?   
He was too scared to acknowledge the rush of emotions that had seemingly hit him out of nowhere since that night in the Hospital Wing. Hermione’s words from earlier echoes in his head; “Did you kiss him because you wanted to see what it was like to kiss a boy or is it something more? Do you like him, or was it just an experimental thing?” This was definitely a bit more than kissing – to Harry anyway. His stomach suddenly dropped as he wondered what all this meant to Draco.

"Right then, pair up and off you go." Shouted Professor Sprout suddenly, waking Harry from his thoughts. He gently pulled his hand free from Draco’s as he turned to face him. He was met with a smile that made his heart flutter and felt a grin break out across his own face; he could worry about ‘what this all meant’ later.

"Partner?" He asked quietly and was thrilled when Draco simply nodded and made his way over to one of the workbenches, still smiling. He looked quickly over at Ron who gave him an over-enthusiastic thumbs up before Hermione pulled him off in the opposite direction.   
Harry knew people were staring as they set up their station but he couldn't have cared less. The pulled on their gloves and stood facing each other with the Tentacular plant in the middle of them.

Realising he hadn’t listened to a single word Professor Sprout had said Harry stood feeling a bit dim with his arms hanging by his side looking at Draco, praying he had caught at least some of the lesson (and at the same time wishing he had been just as distracted as Harry.)

“Erm, did you catch what we’re actually meant to be doing?” he asked Draco hopefully, peering at his from the other side of the plant. Draco looked up with a sheepish grin shaking his head.

“No, I was otherwise distracted actually Potter.” He said, with a hint of his old drawl. It was strange how Harry now found this quite endearing. 

“Lucky for you however I have done this before for Madame Pomfrey, so watch and learn.” He went on and threw Harry another grin before picking up his clippers and carefully snipping at the leaves.

Harry did watch him for a while as he gently picked at the leaves with his long, slender fingers and snipped them off carefully. Harry held his hand out for the leaves and placed them in a jar beside them. They carried on in a comfortable silence for a while and Harry was aware of the rest of class throwing them curious looks and a few whispers could be heard here and there. 

“Did you get back to your common room okay last night?” Draco said quietly as he leaned a little closer to Harry. A shiver ran through Harry at the mention of their encounters the previous night and he felt his blood surge and heat rapidly.

“Yeah, fine. Didn’t see anyone once I left you.” He answered honestly. 

Draco looked up at him through his lashes and the same burning was there that Harry had seen the night before, first in the potions cupboard then later on hidden in the secret passageway. His eyes flickered down to Draco’s mouth and he was again fighting the urge to pull him in to steal a kiss. Thankful for the rather poisonous plant that was currently in between them Harry cleared his throat and pulled his eyes away from Draco’s lips.

Over Draco’s shoulder Harry could see two Slytherin’s huddled together and throwing suspicious looks in their direction. The two of them working together was previously unheard of and their classmates were clearly intrigued by this sudden change. Harry could almost hear the rumour mill firing up and he stifled a laugh as he noticed Pavarti and Lavender across the room actually on their tiptoes trying to get a look at him and Draco.

“We’ve raised a few eyebrows by the looks of it.” Harry murmured to Draco, who was frowning slightly as he concentrated on extracting another leaf. He looked up at Harry and then turned his head to see what Harry was looking at behind him. As he turned back to face Harry he was smirking again and he held Harry's gaze, 

“Imagine if they knew what we got up to in deserted corridors…” he whispered devilishly and Harry felt his stomach drop about 10 inches. His blood began pumping at a high speed again and he knew he was blushing. Trying to push the images of Draco pressed up against the cold stone wall out of his mind he grinned as he realised Draco was flirting with him.

“Imagine…” he managed to say and his voice shook slightly.

“They’ll get over it soon enough,” Draco went on. “There’ll be some other topic to gossip about by the end of the week and nobody will care about us.” He said.

There it was again, ‘us’. Harry heart constricted.

“I’m not bothered.” Harry explained, he’d been the topic of gossip more times than he cared to recall. 

“Let them talk. If the fact that you and I are friends now is the only interesting thing they have to talk about then that’s their sad little problem not ours.” He laughed.

Draco stopped snipping at the plant and looked up at Harry, a strange expression on his face.

“Friends…?” he asked. His brow was puckered slightly and his eyes were deep with something Harry couldn’t identify.

He was suddenly aware of the insinuation in Draco’s question – were they friends or were they more? They had only got on to talking terms a few days ago and things had escalated pretty quickly. Did kissing in corridors and holding hands secretly in class make them more than friends? Harry was filed with panic. He had no idea what label he would put on this and he had no idea what Draco was thinking? Did he want to be just friends or did he want something more? He felt dizzy all of a sudden. 

“Well, I mean we’re talking now, not trying to fight each other. So I guess you’d call that friends?” he reasoned. Draco continued to stare at him and Harry again felt very naked, as though he could see deep down inside Harry by just looking at him.  
A smile broke out across Draco’s face suddenly, that same devilish, sexy smile that did funny things to Harry's nerves.

“Well in that case Potter, you’re the best friend I’ve ever had.” He whispered before turning his attention back to his work.

Harry laughed and held out his hand for another leaf as Draco snipped away.  
Kissing, hand holding, flirting. They were not things Harry did with any of his other friends. As he looked at Draco he knew a conversation would have to take place at some point about where all this was heading. But for now he was happy to sit quietly and watch as Draco worked. He’d worry about everything else later.


	23. Chapter Twenty-Four

The rest of the week passed in a blur and before Draco knew it, it was Friday evening. He hadn’t had any time along with Harry following their kiss but they had managed to sit next to each other in every class they shared.

Sat close together that afternoon in a particularly boring History of Magic lesson, Harry had leaned across to whisper in Dracos ear and the blood in Dracos veins ignited immediately.

“I’m going to the library before dinner to finish some homework if you want to meet me there?” he breathed as he leant closer to Draco.

Words failing him as all the blood rushed to his groin, Draco managed a small nod as he tried not to stare at Harrys mouth.

Later that evening as Draco checked himself in the mirror for the hundredth time he felt the butterflies in his stomach colliding. He was on his way down to the library - a prospect that wouldn't usually excite him so much - but his nerves were alight with anticipation at seeing Harry again.

They hadn’t kissed since their heated goodnight earlier in the week, but Dracos nerves still stood on end at the slightest touch from Harry.They had sat together in any classes they shared through the week and Draco had thrown a few scathing looks at anyone who had turned their heads or whispered about the fact that he and Harry were seemingly getting along. He was ready with a few sharp retorts should anyone actually say anything but they were not needed. After a day or so, once everyone realised they were not about to break into a fight, they left Harry and Draco to their own business.

The same could not be said about Pansy. She was currently giving Draco the silent treatment, but she had told Goyle, who told Blaise, who told Draco, she was furious with him. He really couldn't find it in him to care.

He usually sat with Pansy during Defence Against the Dark Arts and he had to admit he did feel a slight twinge of guilt when he abandoned their usual seat and sat instead with Harry at the back of the class.

His guilt swiftly vanished once he took his seat and felt the waves of heat crashing over him as Harry leaned closer to share their textbook.

He grabbed the books he needed for his essays and piled them into his bag, taking one last look in the mirror and deciding it was best to leave his tie off - he wanted to appear relaxed and casual, which was in complete contrast to how he actually felt.  
As he made his way down the corridor towards the library he noticed a definite spring in his step. The grin he had in his face broadened as he spotted a head of messy black hair near the library's main entrance. Harry stopped outside the doors and smiled as Draco drew closer.

"Hey."

With his hands in his pocket and his tie loose around his neck, Harry looked relaxed and achingly gorgeous. Draco couldn't stop his eyes from travelling up and down the length of Harry's body, drinking him in. He knew Harry was watching him and a faint blush worked its way over his cheeks as he pulled the doors opened the door, waving his arm for Harry to go first.

"After you Potter." He said and couldn't help stealing a glance at Harry's arse as he passed. In fact he watched Harry's arse in quiet appreciation as Harry walked through the library and settled on a table towards the back. It was a quiet spot and Draco's stomach tightened as he realised Harry had walked past a number of empty desks and selected this more private table on purpose.

When they reached the desk they began taking out their books and quills in silence, grinning stupidly at each other every time their eyes met. They had picked a large square table with chairs placed all around but desperate to be close to Harry and feel that burning heat that seemed to burst to life between them, Draco took the seat beside Harry. He slowly pulled his chair closer to Hary wanting to close the gap as much as possible. He tried to do this discreetly, hoping Harry couldn’t sense his desperation.

"Have you started your essay for Sprout yet?" He asked, turning his attention to his Herbology textbook and trying not to look at Harry's eyes. Or lips. Or the flash of skin at the base of his neck where his shirt was open.

"Finished actually. Take a look if you want there are some useful notes at the back for the last few questions."

Their fingers brushed and bolts of something hot shot up Draco's arm. He revelled in every delicious tingle as they sat and worked in a comfortable silence. As Harry concentrated on his Transfiguration essay he ran his hands through his hair distractedly and Draco's thoughts wandered, remembering how soft it felt when he had ran his hands through Harry's hair, pulling him closer when they kissed.

He focused all of his concentration on his work and tried not to allow himself to become distracted as Harry began tapping his foot under the table. The movement was causing their legs to brush up against each other.

He watched out the corner of his eye as Harry dropped his quill suddenly and rubbed his eyes, stretching slightly and arching his neck. Draco had stopped writing now, his full attention on the face beside him and those green eyes that seemed to have a hypnotic effect on him.

Harry seemed lost in thought and with a small frown he sighed quietly.

"You okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine." Harry's voice was almost a whisper. "Just thinking how weird the world works sometimes." He was smiling and looking at something besides Draco. 

Following Harry's eye line he realised he was looking at Draco's wand which he had placed on top of the table.

He felt his heart begin to beat at twice its normal speed and he looked deep in to Harry's eyes, the emotion he was still too scared to acknowledge swelling in his chest.

"Thank you for returning it to me."

"Does it still work okay for you?"

"Yes, it works just as well as it always has." He told Harry. The wand itself was unchanged, working to Draco's will just as well as it had before. But Draco's feelings towards the wand had changed enormously. He saw it as a link to Harry, thinking of him using it gave Draco butterflies.

"Well it chose you first I suppose. Maybe it knew I had my old wand back and it could go back to its rightful owner." Harry said quietly, looking down as Draco twirled the wand in his fingers.

"It worked very well for me though."

Harry was such a powerful wizard Draco suspected he could do extraordinary magic with any wand. The fact that he had shared Draco's wand made Draco feel, special, for want of a better word. A small, unbreakable bond. It was something they both shared, something that was theirs and no-one could take a piece of it or intrude on it in any way. 

"I like that we have sort of shared it."

Draco looked up and smiled as Harry spoke his very thoughts.

"I was thinking the same thing." He admitted. "I often think about you when I use it. It's strange knowing that this is the wand you did it with - the wand that finally killed The Dark Lord."

"Well it was his own wand that did it actually." Harry explained.

"It was his curse backfiring that killed him. But I know what you mean."

It hit Draco suddenly that Harry had managed to safe the entire Wizarding World without killing a soul. He was in awe of this remarkable person sat in front of him.  
Remembering something Harry had told him during their night on the ward, Draco took a deep breath before broaching the subject, nervous at what Harry's response would be.

"You told me about seeing his thoughts," he whispered and paused to look up in to Harry's eyes. He gave Draco a small nod, telling him to carry on.

"How often did that happen? What exactly did you see?"

He realised they had both leaned closer, their faces just inches apart. He heard Harry's breath catch in his chest and his own breathing hitched in response.

"Quite often. Whenever he would experience strong emotions it would throw the link wide open and I would get glimpses of what he was doing, who he was with. Sometimes it was so powerful it was as if I was him."

He saw a shudder run through Harry and without hesitation he reached over and took hold of his hand. As their eyes met Draco gave Harry's hand a gentle squeeze.

"I saw you."

The bottom fell out of Draco's stomach and he chewed on his lips as his nerves shook.

"I felt sick when I realised what he was putting you through. The look of absolute terror on your face is something I will never forget Draco, as long as I live."

He was holding Draco's hand tightly and the blazing look he found in Harry's eyes made him feel like he was being enveloped in warmth.

"When you told me you had seen it, I felt strangely comforted. Knowing you were sort of there, in a weird way, makes me feel better. I wasn't completely alone."

He heard Harry swallow thickly and the urge to kiss Harry was replaced by a need to hold him. Emotions were building and rising in his chest and he felt himself falling deeper. He was reaching the point of no return - he would have to admit to himself if not Harry sooner rather than later just what Harry meant to him.

A cough somewhere in the distance echoed inside Draco's head. He watched as Harry looked up and at the look of shock that appeared on his face, Draco turned to see Blaise standing the other side of their table - with Weasley and Granger of all people.

"Is this a private study group or can anyone join?" Blaise asked, his voice dripping with implications. He had a smirk on his face and a very knowing look in his eye. If Draco wasn't utterly bewildered as to how these three had ended up in each other's company he would have thrown Blaise a glare in return.

"We were looking for you Harry and we bumped into Blaise on our way down. He was looking for Draco -" she glanced over at Draco and he blushed immediately - "and we figured you were probably together."

The three of them pulled back their chairs and settled in, taking out their text books and quills.

Draco's mind was suddenly racing with memories of calling Granger a Mudblood and all the truly horrid things he said about Weasley’s family. Were they really ready to forgive and forget and move on?

Harry and Ron exchanged Herbology notes and everyone seemed to plough on as if they often sat together to study and this was just another Friday night study session.

"Have you finished the essay for Professor Vector Draco?" Hermione asked him, her voice soft and she had a smile on her face. He was astonished she was being so nice and it occurred to him how much Harry must mean to her.

"I found some brilliant notes for the last few questions in A New Theory of Numerology if you want it?"

She pushed the book towards Draco and he returned her smile, grateful for her kindness and willingness to forgive him. He felt it was much more than he deserved.

"I'm just doing it now thanks Granger." He managed to say.

He saw Harry give her a huge smile and his heart spluttered.

"You a Cannons fan?" He heard Weasley ask Blaise and he smiled as he realised that would be the beginning of a long and detailed discussion. Blaise was an ardent Chudley Cannons fan and could talk Quidditch until he was blue in the face.

“Of course.” Blaise replied, looking at Weasley as though he was simple and needed to be spoken to very slowly. “Anyone who knows their quidditch supports them. Best team in the league, they’re just in transition at the moment with so many team changes. But we’ll be challenging for the league this time next year.” He finished.

“I was saying the exact same thing this morning to Dean! He has had his head turned by that idiot Michael Comer and is now supporting Puddlemere.” He rolled his eyes and Blaise gave him a look that said he understood – Dean was an idiot.

Sure enough the two of them quickly abandoned their essays and we're deep in debate about this year’s league challengers.

Draco felt he had stumbled into some strange dream. He had barely had time to comprehend the fact that he had spent the week flirting with Harry and kissing in dark corridors. Now their friend were creeping inside their bubble and Draco felt a feeling of content wash over him.

He leaned in towards Harry and whispered in his ear, breathing in his scent as he did.

"This certainly makes things easier for the two of us doesn't it Potter - if we're going to be friends."

He still wasn't happy with the word friends but they hadn't come up with anything better so it would have to do for now.

Harry's hand slipped under the desks and took hold of Draco's firmly, pulling him closer and holding Draco's gaze with an intensity that made a lump rise in Draco's throat. "I think we're going to be more than friends Draco." He whispered and Draco wasn't sure if the tremble that ran through him was his or Harry's – or both.


	24. Chapter Twenty-Five

As they made their way down to the main hall for dinner the five of them attracted a few curious stares. Ron and Blaise were still deconstructing the last Chudley Cannons match against the Wimbourne Wasps and Harry had eventually joined in, once the initial shock had worn off. He surprised how easy it was and he found Blaise quite funny and not at all how he had imagined. It seemed he had mistaken his quietness and reserved nature for arrogance.

Hermione and Draco were talking about their Arithmancy essay and Harry hadn't a clue what either of them were talking about - the whole subject as a complete mystery to him. But he was glad the two of them seemed to be getting along.

Once they arrived at the entrance to the hall Ron and Blaise said a quick "see you later" and made their way over to their respective house tables.

"I'll pass you that book tomorrow then Draco, I think you'll enjoy it."

Hermione was smiling warmly at Draco and Harry's love for his best friend swelled.

"Brilliant thanks Granger."

Hermione followed Ron and took her seat beside him, leaving Harry alone, lingering at the door with Draco.

"So, I'll see you later then?"

"See you later Potter."

As Harry made his way over to the Gryffindor table he had to force himself to not turn back and take one last look at Draco. It was ridiculous he was missing him already.

"That was interesting." Hermione mused as Harry sat down.

"He's not bad that Blaise, for a Slytherin. Knows his Quidditch." Ron said the last part as though this was a redeeming quality for anyone.

"The two of you looked deep in to something when we arrived."

Harry looked up and Hermione was looking at him with a serious expression.

"We were talking about his wand."

Ron spluttered his juice as he stifled a laugh. Harry threw a chip at him.

"Funny. You git. We were talking about me using his Hawthorne wand. I told him about the link between me and Voldemort, that I had seen him.” A shudder rippled through Harry as an image of Draco’s pale, petrified face flashed through his mind.

“I knew what Voldemort made him do, what he put him through.” He whispered. It was this that ultimately made it easy for Harry to forgive Draco. That, and the fact he had sort of helped save them that day at the manor.

He cleared his throat and began pilling his plate with pie and chips, his stomach rumbling loudly.

“So this is more than just snogging then?” Hermione asked and Harry looked up from his dinner to see her face was awash with concern.

“What makes you say that?” he asked. He knew he was blushing furiously. Truth be told he did want this to be more than snogging but he had no idea if Draco felt the same way. They had only kissed twice but just being in Draco’s presence was enough to send Harry into a ball of nerves – was it so obvious that Hermione has seen straight through him?

“You’ve let your guard down with him.” Hermione answered simply. Not entirely sure what she meant Harry lowered his head and began filling his plate. He could feel her eyes on him but he didn’t look up to meet her gaze. He hadn’t worked out his feelings for Draco properly yet and he knew Hermione was already a few steps ahead of him as usual, and he was too scared to carry on this conversation and face up to where this was possibly heading.

He bolted his dinner down and tried to engage in the conversation around him but his mind was elsewhere. He had a plan in his mind to find Draco on his map after dinner and pray he wasn't in the Slytherin common room. Maybe he would be on the ward or getting stores again down in Slughorn's cupboard. Either way Harry was hoping he would find him alone.

That was where his plan ended however as he had absolutely no idea what he would do should he actually find Draco alone. He knew what he wanted to do but whether he would have the nerve to actually follow through with it was another thing. All week his mind had been drifting to various scenarios involving him and Draco in secluded parts of the castle, picking up where they had left off after their kiss Monday night.  
Harry was surprised at the direction his daydreams had taken and they often ended with he and Draco in some state of undress, doing things Harry had never actually done with another person before. 

He was less than experience when it came to sex – and the thought of touching another boy or another boy touching him petrified him and excited him in equal measure. He knew Draco was just an inexperienced and this gave him some small comfort. 

His fantasies were so far cloudy, like peering at them through smoke. He and Draco were a blur of skin and mouths crashing together and Harry was unable to see what exactly they were doing – his inexperience making it impossible to even dream up anything specific. But he knew he wanted Draco in ways he had never wanted anyone else before. 

He stood from the table and told the others he would meet them back in the common room. 

“No snogging in the library – Hermione will do her nut.” Ron whispered as Harry gathered his bag and robes. He was smirking and Harry managed to throw him a grin before he turned and darted out of the hall, glancing over to the Slytherin table on his way out. There was no sign of Draco.

Racing up the stairs Harry ducked behind a large suit of armour and took out his map.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good..."

Scanning the floors he first checked the Slytherin common room - no sign of Draco. He checked the Hospital Wing, Slughorn's Classroom, the boys bathrooms and even the library in case Draco had gone back to study some more.

He was nowhere to be seen. Leaning back against the wall Harry chewed on his lip as he thought. Where the hell was he?. He couldn't have left the castle. He wasn't on the Quidditch team any more so he wasn't out flying for practice.

The answer popped in to head out of nowhere and smiling to himself Harry folded up his map and stuffed it in his pocket as he tore up the stairs to the seventh floor towards the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy.

Draco was in the Room of Requirement - but once he got there Harry realised he wouldn't be able to get in. He stood facing the wall and asked the room if he could get in to see Draco but nothing happened. As he leant against the tapestry opposite, considering waiting there until Draco came out he suddenly saw movement to the bottom right hand side - a small wooden door had appeared.

Harry felt choked all of a sudden as his heart tried to escape out of his mouth. He stepped up to the door and took a deep breath, his hand shaking as he reached for the door handle. As he slowly pushed open the door he felt a warmth wash over him from the inside and the first thing he saw was a small fireplace, a fire crackling away in the hearth.

As he peered around the door his eyes found a figure, lounging in an armchair opposite the fire.

Draco's head snapped up and when he saw Harry his smile made the muscles deep inside Harry constrict.

He stepped in to the room and closed the door behind him.

“You found me then – again.” Something in Dracos voice suggested he had expected Harry to find him.

"What is this place?" Harry asked as he took in the rooms surroundings. It looked like someone's sitting room. There was an armchair currently occupied by Draco, a small couch and a table with books and a lamp on top. The fire was giving off a warm glow and the carpet beneath his feet was thick and plush. The room was cosy and inviting.

"It's my hiding place." Draco replied, sitting up and looking at Harry as though he had never seen him before. He licked his lips and Harry's could feel waves of nerves and lust rolling off of Draco in equal measure. It was all he could do to not jump on him there and then.

"How was I able to get in?" Harry wondered aloud, trying to remain in control of himself. The room usually makes itself private for whoever is using it and access when it's in use isn't usually possible unless you know what to ask for.  
He noticed a deep blush work its way across Draco's face and he looked down at his hands before answering in an almost whisper.

"I was just thinking of you, wondering if you would come looking for me again. I thought if you did find me I would want you to get in here - the room must have heard me?"

He looked up at Harry with a burning look and Harry's eyes flickered to the couch briefly before landing back on Draco. His head was spinning – Draco was here, alone in this small, cosy very private room thinking of Harry, wanting him to find him. Had he asked the room for the large, comfortable looking sofa? He swallowed thickly as Draco leaned forwards, his hands on his knees as though he were about to stand up, but he didn’t move.

The room was suddenly very hot - and for that matter so was Draco. He had taken off his jumper and his shirt was unbuttoned down to the dip of his neck. He looked so good he was making Harry's mouth water.

With the realisation that they were completely isolated with no-one to interrupt Harry was hit with a fierce lust. The daydreams he had been lost in all week came flooding back to him, forcing him to move without thinking.

Marching purposefully over to the chair he leaned down, took a hold of Draco's wrist and pulled him up towards him, capturing his mouth in a hot, desperate kiss.   
All worries of whether he and Draco were friends, more than friends or boyfriends vanished from his mind and he was now overcome with a desire to consume Draco completely.

A gasp escaped Draco's mouth and Harry took full advantage, slipping his tongue in to meet Draco's and massaging and caressing them together. Grasping hold of Draco’s hips Harry pulled him closer, snaking his hands up Draco’s waist and over the hard lines of his chest. He could feel Draco’s heart beating fiercely under his hand and his own heart seemed to speed up in response – matching Draco’s beat for beat. 

His blood was pumping at speed throughout his body and his erection had sprung to life instantly at Draco's touch. Responding to Harry's hungry kisses Draco pulled him closer and the bottom of Harry's stomach dropped as he felt Draco's erection pushing up against his own. 

In the midst of his desire Harry managed to be awed that he was doing something right – that Draco was apparently just as turned on as he was. He smiled as Draco’s hands reached up to cup his face, tilting his head to take the kiss deeper.  
His senses were on overload and as a surge of lust tore through Harry he wanted more. He craved every part of Draco wanting his touch and taste. Stumbling forward he pushed Draco in the direction of the couch and he heard his legs hit the edge as he pushed him back.

Their lips broke contact briefly as Draco sat back on the couch and Harry scrambled on top of him.He looked in to Draco's face and the need he found there set his nerves alight. He looked completely undone and Harry hesitated, wanted to press the memory of Draco’s face deep in to his mind.

"Draco," he moaned but he words were lost as Draco recaptured his mouth, delivering hot hungry kisses, twisting his fingers into Harry's hair and pulling him closer.

As Draco lay back he took Harry with him, his hands running down Harry's spine and over his arse, squeezing gently. An instinct overtook Harry and he began to thrust his hips, running his hand down Draco's thigh and hooking under his knee. He hitched Draco's leg up and their hips crashed together, their hard cocks bumping in to each other as they both moved with indecent need.

Running his hand up over Draco's chest Harry fumbled with the buttons on his shirt. He wanted to feel Draco's hot skin against his own, bare flesh on bare flesh. As he pulled open his shirt he felt Draco's hands run up his arse on to his back and he untucked Harry's shirt, pulling it up towards his head. Realising his intention Harry leaned up and quickly pulled his own shirt up over his head and discarded it to the floor.

He looked down to the pale face beneath him, his lips swollen with kisses and smiled again, still unable to comprehend what they were doing, how amazing it felt and that Draco seemed just as intoxicated as he felt.

Lowering his head he pressed hot wet kisses to Draco's collarbone and a thrill ran through him as Draco moaned loudly in appreciation. His hips jerked forwards pressing hard against Harry's and they began a fast rhythmic beat, meeting each other thrust for thrust.

A feeling like no other Harry had ever experienced was flowing through him. Somewhere in the very back of his mind he realised he was dry humping Draco Malfoy - and it was amazing. Moans of appreciation were escaping Draco's mouth under Harry's relentless kisses and the sound was whipping Harry into a frenzy. The friction on his erection felt so good it was aching and he gripped Draco’s hand tightly, feeling them both shaking as they linked their fingers together.

He could feel pleasure mounting and he traced his tongue up Draco's jaw and caught Draco's mouth again, their tongues crashing together meeting the rhythm of their hips.

As Harry felt Draco's grip on his arse tighten the pleasure in his groin was building and he snaked his hands up in to Draco's hair as he gasped for air between kisses. His senses erupted as he felt his climax thunder through him. His body convulsed and he bit down on Draco's lips as he came undone.

He vaguely registered Draco trembling beneath him and as he gave a strangled cry Harry realised they had come together. Panting and with spots in front of his eyes Harry pressed his forehead to Draco's and looked deep in to his steel grey eyes.  
"You do that with all your friends Potter?"

"I told you, we're going to be more than friends


	25. Chapter Twenty-Six

Draco was fixing a potion in the far corner of the Hospital Wing, barely concentrating on what he was doing. Thankfully it was a simple remedy he had prepared a number of times and he knew the ingredients and instructions like the back of his hand.  
His mind was far away, lost in thoughts of the same thing that had consumed his waking hours (and his dreams) for months now - Harry. 

Admittedly his day dreaming had intensified over the course of the past week since he and Harry had stumbled over obstacles at breakneck speed. It seemed surreal to Draco that this time last week, he was watching Harry from afar, out of the windows of this very room. He felt a smile spread across his face as he recalled the events of the last seven days, the highlights replaying in his mind like a flick book; Harry in his bed with ruffled hair and warm friendly eyes, talking about Harry being gay in Slughorn’s cupboard, almost kissing, running from Peeves and crashing together in the hidden passageway, kissing, kissing again. Draco could still feel the weight of Harry pressed up against him as their mouths pressed together.  
And the night before - when their kiss had rapidly intensified and he found Harry on top of him, moving and thrusting in ways Draco had imagined so clearly in his boldest of daydreams  
.  
Blushing he turned back to the third year boy currently occupying the bed opposite that which Harry had spent the night (with Draco) the previous week. The Ravenclaw boy had been admitted earlier with severe anxiety ahead of their Christmas exams and Madame Pomfrey had ordered him to stay the night and asked Draco to prepare a Calming Draught.

He made his way over to the boy whom Madame Pomfrey had called Joseph. He looked pale and was still breathing heavily.

"Here you go," Draco said quietly with what he hoped was a friendly smile on his face as he passed Joseph his potion. The boy took the goblet with shaking hands and sipped, looking up at Draco with wide eyes. He felt a sudden surge of sympathy for the boy and gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze before turning to make his way to the desk.

He stopped in his tracks as he saw Hermione Granger walking in to the ward and making her way towards him. She had a kind smile on her face and Draco was again hit with a wave of shame for how horrible he had been to her over the years. He acknowledged her with a small nod of his head and they met half way across the ward. Draco felt awkward for some reason and placed his hands in his pockets.

"Morning Draco."

Noting the use of his given name Draco smiled and thought of the first time he heard Harry use it.

"Morning. What brings you up here - Are you looking for Madame Pomfrey?"

"No I was looking for you actually. Here's that book I told you about."

Taking the book from her Draco again thought of how much Harry must mean to her that she was making such an effort to be nice to him. He then thought of Pansy and the fact that she was still giving him the silent treatment.

"Thanks very much."

"Do you have a break coming up? I wanted a word if you have a bit of time?"

Draco's stomach plummeted and he felt sheen of sweat formulate across his forehead. She was going to warn him off, tell him to stay clear of her friend, of the hero of the Wizarding World. Draco was well aware that he did not deserve Harry's friendship, or companionship, whatever you wanted to call it. He knew he was tainted and that someone as pure as Harry, who is good to his very core deserved someone better than Draco. He was afraid to hear these things out loud, from someone else's mouth.

As if reading his thoughts, Granger added,  
"No need to look so worried Draco. I just want to talk."

He was actually due to finish in ten minutes so she said she would wait for him to complete his paperwork and hand over to Madame Pomfrey.

With butterflies that seemed to be made of lead dancing about his stomach, Draco led Granger off the ward and out into the quiet corridor.

"Shall we find an empty classroom for a bit of privacy?" She asked and this did nothing to sooth Draco's nerves. Glancing up the corridor he noticed the tapestry further down where he and Harry had hidden behind and despite the possibility of imminent awkwardness with Granger he smiled.

"Follow me." He said simply and made his way down towards the hidden passageway. Granger followed without questioning where they were going and when Draco directed her behind the hidden doorway she smiled and she passed him to go first.

"Harry's been sharing quite a few of his secrets with you then?" She muttered and Draco blushed furiously. He could have lied and told her he had found the passageway on his own but he knew his expression would betray him.

Closing the door behind him he tried not to lose himself in memories of being pressed up against the wall as Potter delivered him hot frantic kisses. He swallowed loudly and took a deep breath.

Granger sat down on the top step of the steep stairwell and looked up at Draco, indicating for him to sit beside her. He obliged and they were pressed up close in the narrow space, their knees forced against each other's. Granger turned slightly to look at Draco but he kept his gaze fixed forward, scared to meet her eyes.

"So, you can probably guess what I wanted to talk to you about?" She said quietly   
although her voice echoed slightly down the empty stairwell.

"Harry." Draco replied simply and his heart fluttered at the sound of Harry's name.

"Things seem to be changing quite quickly between the two of you." She said. It wasn't a question. A thrill ran through Draco as she referred to 'the two of them' When he didn't respond she went on.

"A week ago the two of you barely said a word to each other, and now you're kissing in hidden corners of the castle and having intense private moments in the library.   
Harry didn't even realise he was gay this time last week Draco, it all seems to be escalating at an alarming speed."  
He wasn't sure what to say. Everything she had said was true, but he had no idea what she was expecting him to say. He chanced a quick glance sideways and saw Granger considering him with concern and curiosity in her eyes.

"I know, my heads spinning a little with it all to be honest." He heard himself say. He hadn't meant to be so honest but he found such sincerity in her face he suddenly felt safe and comfortable in confiding in her.

"I've never seen Harry like this," she explained, "he hasn't smiled so much since before the war."

Draco's heart was suddenly dancing and he could hear his blood pounding in his ears.

"Neither have I." He said, his voice almost a whisper in the quiet passageway.

"I get the feeling this might be a little more than just snogging, for Harry at least, and   
I just wanted to see where your head was. You can tell me it's none if my business and I suppose you would be right, but Harry is my best friend and I don't want to see him get hurt."

Realising that she wasn't telling Draco to leave Harry alone he felt himself unclench and relax slightly. He found it strange that she was worried he might hurt Harry - the thought hadn't even occurred to him. He knew he was risking his own heart in allowing himself to fall for Harry. He had surrendered himself to his feelings and was willing to put himself in the firing line if the reward was more time with Harry. But Draco couldn't imagine a scenario where he could possibly hurt Harry - he was willing to do anything to make Harry happy, to keep him.

"I'm not going to hurt him." He told her and held her gaze steady, wanting her to see the genuineness in his eyes. She considered him for a moment, a small frown tugging at her brow. 

“Is Harry the first boy you have kissed?” 

“Yes.”  
“Is he the first boy you have ever fancied?”

“He is the only person I have ever felt anything about, boy or girl.”

Draco was startled by his own honesty but he felt he needed to tell her, to let her know this meant more to Draco than she could possibly understand.

“So this is something more than just snogging then – you like him.”

Feeling that this was an enormous understatement of his feelings, Draco nodded.

“Right.” Granger replied, quietly. 

Neither of them spoke for a few moments, and Draco pondered Grangers presumption that he was going to hurt Harry. This would imply that Harry had feelings for Draco that could be hurt, that this was more than just snogging to Harry as well. He let that sink in for a few moments.

“Blaise thinks I’m the one who’s going to end up hurt. He’s worried that I’m some sort of experiment for Harry to see how he feels about being gay and that he might be using me.” 

“Harry would never do that.” 

“That’s what I thought. Not intentionally anyway.”

“You think he might be using you without realising it?”

“Maybe…”  
She paused for a moment before turning to face him and he was taken aback when she placed her hand on top of his.

“I know Harry isn’t using you Draco. He likes you. That’s why I am so worried. I don’t think he’s quite realised how much yet but I’ve seen his face when he looks at you, I can hear it in his voice when he speaks about you. You have always affected him in a way that no-one else does and now it seems to be in a good way for once.”

“You think he really likes me?” Draco asked, his tone laced with doubt. 

“I know he does.”

Joy washed over Draco like a warm breeze and he felt his heart fluttering frantically as he allowed himself to believe what Granger was telling him. 

“Things have moved so fast, have either of you thought of where this is heading?”

Merlin, she was as bad as Blaise - a million steps ahead of everyone else.

“Heading? What do you mean?”

“Well in one week you have gone from a civil disregard of one another to not being able to keep your hands off each other – at this rate heaven knows what you’ll be doing this time next week.”

The insinuation was not lost on Draco and he blushed a furious red as he realised she was talking about sex. She smiled as he blushed,

“You’ve given it some thought then?”

“Some.”

He had thought of nothing else.

“Why Harry?” she asked suddenly and Draco’s head snapped up to look at her   
again.

“What do you mean?”

“He said you’ve known you’re gay for some time, but you have never been with another boy. Why Harry, why now?”

The answer slipped from Draco’s mouth before he had time to filter it,  
“It’s always been him.”

She looked at him intently and his breath caught in his chest as he realised his admission. After all this time, after everything they had been through, Draco finally understood the place Harry held in his heart, it was always there, Draco was just now realising it.

“They say there is a fine line between love and hate.” Granger said softly and she was looking at Draco with an earnest smile. “Harry’s full of his own pride Draco. He would rather be miserable than allow himself to be vulnerable. You should tell him how you feel.”

“And what if he runs in the opposite direction, what if I scare him away.” 

“I think you’ll be surprised.”

They sat quietly again, Draco’s mind was racing. He had admitted his feelings out loud and it felt like a small weight had been lifted. Granger was Harry's best friend she knew him better than anyone and she seemed to think Harry had strong feelings for Draco. 

“He looks for you, you know, on his map. It used to be because he suspected you were up to something but now he just watches you. He doesn’t know I know what he is doing, I don’t even think he realised how often he does it.”

He wasn’t sure why she was telling him this but it made Draco smile all the same. 

“Thanks Granger.”

“Thank me by making Harry happy Draco.” She replied, as she stood up and brushed off her jeans. She turned to leave and to his surprise, gave Draco’s shoulder a gentle squeeze.

If he could make Harry feel half as happy as he felt right now, he would consider it job done.

He stood up to leave and as he followed Granger out the door he heard a loud shriek from the other end of the corridor. He turned quickly to see Pansy streaking towards him looking furious.

"What the hell are you doing with HER?" She yelled, pointing wildly at them both.   
Granger spun around and backed away slightly as Pansy advanced on them.

"Calm down Pans for Merlin's sake."

"I will not calm down. I haven't seen you properly in days and I come to meet you for lunch and find you in hidden passageways with HER?"

"Excuse me I have a name." Granger shot out but Pansy didn't seem to hear.

"So you're joining Gryffindor then Draco? You might as well, you spend all your bloody time with them lately."

"You're being ridic-"

"I came to find you because I have just spoke to Blaise - and he seems to think there is something going on between you and Potter? I told him it's absurd but here I find you with this Mudbl-"

"SHUT UP... Don't dare call her a Mudblood Pans, please for Merlin's sake. We were just talking, not that it's any of your business."

Blood was boiling through Draco's veins at Pansy’s appearance and he looked in to her face, twisted with hatred and bitterness and thought of Granger, standing by Harry no matter what, seeking Draco out to help him, help them both. Pansy was a brutal reminder of the long standing hatred between Slytherin and Gryffindor and Draco didn’t want to be reminded.

"And Blaise is right - there is something going on between me and Harry. But it's got nothing to do with you – or anyone else for that matter.”

He heard Granger’s breath catch beside him and he turned his back on his supposed Friend and walked away, pulling Granger with him.

As they walked down the corridor Granger nudged his elbow gently,

"I have a feeling you might end up regretting that."

With a sinking feeling, Draco knew she was right.


	26. Chapter Twenty-Seven

The Gryffindor common room was quiet the following morning with most people still down at breakfast and a few late sleepers not even up yet, enjoying a Saturday lie-in. 

Harry had been up since dawn, bright eyes and bushy tailed. He was promptly thrown out of the dorms by the other lads who were still trying to sleep and his merry whistling was getting on their nerves.

He came down to find the common room almost empty and grabbed his favourite seat in front of the fire where he had sat, for the past two hours, reliving the events of the previous week - and his dalliance with Draco the night before. 

His stomach jolted every time he thought about how quickly their kiss had escalated into something more and the image of Draco's face, afire with lust, was burned into Harry's memory.

 

"What are you so happy about?"

Ginny's voice snapped Harry out of his fantasy and he looked up to see her   
contemplating him with a curious smile on her face.

"Morning Gin."

He moved his legs which were stretched the length of the old battered couch so she could join him. As she dropped into the seat next to him he realised he hadn't spoken to her properly in weeks and he felt quite guilty.

"How's things?"

"Yeah good, you?"

"Can't complain."

"How's your leg?"

"Fine thanks." Harry stomach swooped as memories of the Hospital Wing rushed back to him and he absently traced his fingers over his thigh, remember the tremble that ran through him when Draco first touched him.

"So - you and Malfoy." 

There it was - pleasantries out of the way and now they could move on to what Ginny really wanted to talk about.

"I know. Who'd have thought we could get along without the world ending?" He laughed, trying to avoid a serious and potentially embarrassing conversation by hiding behind humour. 

Ginny wasn't buying it.

"You seem to be a bit more than friends..." She said quietly. Harry turned to see her looking unblinking in to his face. 

"In what way?" He asked, his nerves suddenly on edge. So far only Ron and Hermione knew anything had happened with him and Draco - nobody else even knew he was gay - and he had barely had time to take it all in himself. 

"I know you Harry. I've seen the way you look at him. The way you are with him."  
Harry squirmed in his seat and began fiddling with one of the cushions, not meeting Ginny's eye. He was mortified that she had detected his feeling for Draco from a distance - how obvious must it be up close, to Draco?.  
"I've watched you all week, I haven't seen you smile like that in such a long time   
Harry. I can't even remember the last time I heard you laugh. Is there something going on?"

Just like Hermione Ginny always shot straight to the point. It's funny how it was always one of the things he loved about her because right now he was wishing she wasn't so direct.

"Between me and Malfoy?" He asked trying to sound incredulous, as if the idea of him being involved with another boy was absurd.

Ginny placed a hand on his leg and leaned closer, her face so familiar to Harry he felt a comfort in her eyes. 

"After everything we've been through Harry, please don't insult what we had by lying to me." 

Her voice was soft but her eyes were hard and blazing. Harry took a deep shaky breath as he remembered Hermione telling him Ginny's suspicious about him being gay. Another person who knew before he did.

"We've kissed." He said, his voice a little more than a whisper. He could tell she was trying to keep her face from falling, betraying her feelings and her hand balled into a fist on Harry's leg. He knew she still had feelings for him and he couldn't bare to think he was causing her pain. He wanted to reach out and hug her but he knew she wouldn't want him to.

"And...”

"And what?" - he wasn't going to tell her he come in his pants like a 13 year old just from a bit of dry humping...

"How was it?" 

He felt a huge wave of affection crash over him for Ginny, willing to sit and let him talk it out with her in spite of how it hurt her. 

"Nice." He murmured, too embarrassed to express how he really felt and also not wanting to rub salt in Ginny's wounds.

"You don't get a smile on your face like that from 'nice' Harry. How was it really?" 

She was smirking at him and he felt a blush work its way over his cheeks.

"Really nice?" He said and laughed as she rolled her eyes.

"I’m sorry Gin." He heard himself saying, placing his hand over hers,"I never meant to hurt you. If I was interested in girls then I wouldn't need to look at anyone else - you'd be the one." 

They hadn't really talked about how and why they had split since deciding to call it quits in the summer. This was largely due to Harry not knowing what he wanted or why his feelings for Ginny had changed so much. Now that the answer had slapped him in the face in the form of hot kisses with Draco he felt he owed Ginny some sort of explanation.

"Honestly - I actually feel better knowing you're gay." She said slowly, a small frown puckering her brow.

"It wasn't me you didn't want. It was girls full stop. That makes it sort of easier, if that makes sense?" She looked at him and he nodded - he understood what she meant.

"I love you to bits Gin you know that don't you?"

"Shut up. So is this just a snogging thing with Malfoy or is something more? Hermione said you were into something pretty intense in the library last night."  
Making a mental note to kill Hermione Harry shrugged, knowing his blush was betraying him.

"We were just talking."

"And holding hands...."

Hermione was dead.

"Erm..."

"What is your gut telling you?" 

Harry was thrown by her question at first.

"What do you mean?"

"You've always had really good instincts Harry and you always act on them - what's your heart telling you?"

"Bloody hell Gin I don't know I thought I was straight this time last week." He laughed. He really didn't want to have to analyse his feelings out of fear of where   
they were leading him.

"This isn't just some random boy Harry - it's Malfoy." Ginny said sternly and she looked awash with concern. Harry's stomach was doing somersaults and he chewed on his bottom lip.

"You two have always been so intense. I don't think you can have some casual fling together and both walk away without emotions coming in to play Harry. You both always rouse feelings in each other and i don't want to see you get hurt."  
Hearing Ginny voice his own concerns made Harry feel sick with panic and all the feelings of euphoria from his heated dry hump the night before had faded. 

"You think he's going to hurt me?"

"You've opened yourself up to him Harry in a way I haven't seen you do before, not even with me. You need to be honest with yourself how you feel and what you want - even if you're not honest with him just yet."

Swallowing hard Harry closed his eyes and allowed the thoughts and feelings he had tried to keep concealed flood out from their mental prison. He wanted Draco, for more than just kissing. He was falling for him and was too scared to admit it in case Draco didn't feel the same.

"I like him. A lot. I want more than just snogging." He replied, feeling as though a weight had been lifted to finally admit his feelings.

"Do you think he feels the same way?" 

"I don't know."

They sat quietly for a while both lost in thought.

"Have you done anything more than snogging?" Ginny asked suddenly.

Harry's blush was enough of an answer and her eyebrows shot up her forehead in   
surprise.

"Nothing too heavy." He explained defensively although not really sure why.

"Right. So things are getting serious then - physically I mean?"

How she managed to have this conversation without blushing Harry was baffled. He was happy in his own head with his thoughts of what he wanted to do with Draco but saying them out loud was too embarrassing. Especially to Ginny.  
"I don't know what's happening physically Gin I'm as clueless now as I was with you." He said and managed a small laugh.

"You weren't clueless - you were just with the wrong person." She said kindly. 

"Do you want things to get more physical?" 

Hell yes.

"Well, yeah, I mean I haven't thought about it loads but you know if things got a bit carried away I wouldn't complain." He stuttered stupidly.

Ginny looked at him intently for a moment before smiling and leaning over to kiss   
Harry on his forehead.

"I've got bad news for you Harry," she said and at the look of panic on his face she grinned and went on, “You are totally and utterly crushing on Draco Malfoy. If you're sure he has changed then just go for it, tell him how you feel." 

Harry wanted to say it was more than just a crush, that there were feelings building inside him he had never felt before. Physically and emotionally.

"If you're scared he won't feel the same you needn't be." She added.

Harry looked up at her frowning and she went on, “I’ve been watching him too Harry. He's obviously crazy about you. But if he does hurt you – he’ll have me to answer to."

Harry's stomach back-flipped and landed somewhere in his throat. Ginny gave him a small smile before picking up a magazine and disappearing behind it.

It seemed too much to hope for that she was right, but remembering the looks between him and Draco and the intensity behind his eyes every time he looked at Harry something swelled in Harry's chest and he smiled.


	27. Chapter Twenty-Eight

Despite the fact he hadn't slept a wink Draco was wide awake and the first to be up and dressed in their dorms Sunday morning. He had sat up talking to Blaise until the small hours about Pansy and what he was going to have to face the next day.  
It turned out Blaise hasn't actually told her about Draco and Harry, she had been asking questions and when Blaise didn't answer her the way she wanted she had flown off the handle and made her own assumptions. 

"She was bound to find out sooner or later." Draco reasoned. He just wished it was later so he had more of an idea what was actually going on between him and Harry and they knew where they were going together.

He sat on his bed and fastened his laces, while the butterflies in his stomach rumbled making him feel more nervous. The door to the bathroom opened and Blaise came back into the dorm with Theo following close behind.

"You're eager this morning for someone who's probably going to have the piss taken out of him all day." Theo said laughing and Blaise threw a wet towel at him.

"Pack it in he doesn't need you making him feel any worse."

Draco was grateful to his friend for his support but he knew Theo was just winding him up. He'd laughed his head off when he found out Draco had been sneaking about kissing Harry all week and clapping him on the back told him,

"You might loosen up now then and actually smile and not be so morbid to be around. Getting laid does wonder for you." 

He hadn't listened when Draco tried to explain he hadn't gone that far with Harry but Draco was just happy his friend was taking the news well.

"You okay?" Blaise asked him as he pulled his jeans on, looking at Draco with apprehension.

"Yes, I'll be fine. I really don't give a fuck what anyone thinks. If people take the piss well then they'll be on the receiving end of a stinging jinx." He replied. He was being honest, he really didn't care what people thought. The only thing that worried him was Harry. 

Nobody knew Harry was even gay and now the whole school knew he'd been snogging a Malfoy and former Death Eater. He was so keen to get down to breakfast in the hopes of seeing Harry and making sure he was okay.   
Blaise slipped his hoodie over his head and quickly pulled on his trainers,

"Come on then - let's see what damage Pansy has done this time." He said and led the way out of the dorms. Draco followed with the thought of seeing Harry making him put one foot in front of the other. Pansy was in the common room with the Greengrass sisters and threw Draco a murderous look as he walked across to the main door. 

"Surprised you're still slumming it down here Draco. I thought you'd be up in Gryffindor Tower with your hero boyfriend."

A few people laughed but she clearly didn't get the reaction she was going for and she stomped off towards the girls dorms.

The younger Greengrass sister Astoria smiled at Draco apologetically. They'd remained friendly since they shared their kiss and she was one of the first to congratulate Draco on finally coming out.

"Ignore her Draco, she'll get over it. It's nice to see you smiling lately."

He smiled back and felt his resolve grow stronger. He marched purposefully to the entrance and was half way up the corridor with Blaise jogging to keep up.  
As they walked across the entrance hall Draco's eyes were on stalks looking for Harry. It was still a little early for a Sunday so the hall wasn't too busy. As he glanced over to the Gryffindor table his view was blocked suddenly by a bright pair of blue eyes in front of him. He staggered back slightly and realised it was the busty blonde who had asked Harry out last week.

"Hi Draco, have you got a moment?"

Wondering wildly if she was going to ask him out words failed him and he was rooted to the spot as she stepped in closer to him. Blaise had stopped at his side and was listening intently.

"I just wanted to apologise for the other day - when I asked Harry out." She said at Draco's perplexed expression. The penny wasn't quite dropping and his brain was struggling to catch up.

"Apologise? To me? What for?" He asked, remembering that she did rudely ignore him but conceding this didn't really warrant a full blown apology.

"Well I didn't realise he was your boyfriend. I did think it was strange the two of you were walking down the dungeons together but it never occurred to me you were 'together-together'." She said.

Draco didn't know whether to laugh or cringe. He could explain that they were not anything when she asked Harry out - and truth be told he didn't know what exactly they were right now. 

"Oh right." He heard himself say stupidly. He could see Blaise chuckling quietly beside him.

"So I just wanted to say sorry anyway. Obviously if I'd have known the two of you were, you know, an item, I would never have asked Harry out - especially right in front of you." She laughed as she tossed her hair over her shoulder.

A familiar laugh behind him made Draco's head spin and his eyes landed on the face he's been waiting to see all morning. Harry was amused at the Ravenclaw girl and as soon as Draco saw the relaxed smile and those green eyes he instantly felt better. He could face whatever people had to throw at him if the reward was Harry. He was worth it all - and more.

"Don't worry about it." He told the Ravenclaw girl distractedly. He realised he hadn't corrected her or denied that he and Harry were an item - or whatever you wanted to call it. That discussion was still to be had. Harry was still grinning and it made Draco's heart sing. 

"Makes sense now why you were giving me daggers the whole time. Oh hi Harry. You should have told me you were already taken and saved me the embarrassment." The blonde girl laughed before turning and leaving in a wave of blonde hair. 

Shit. She'd noticed he had been glaring at her. He remembered feeling a massive wave of jealously in case Harry actually took her up on her offer. That seemed like a million years ago.

Draco was vaguely aware of Blaise and Weasley perving on her as she left, and he heard one of them mutter “you’d have to be gay to turn her down…” but his attention was focused entirely on Harry. He seemed relaxed, not worried about everyone knowing he was gay. He wasn't running in the complete opposite direction anyway.

Blaise, Granger and Weasley wandered off to their breakfasts leaving Draco and Harry alone by the door. It was getting a bit busier now and people were drifting down from their lie-ins.

"You okay?" They both asked together - Draco laughed awkwardly feeling all eyes in the hall on them. Harry was laughing to but his eyes were fixed firmly holding Draco's gaze. He took a long deep breath before whispering,

"I'm good as long as you're good." 

Draco burned under his gaze and he suddenly wanted to tell Harry everything - how he made Draco feel and how he never wanted to let Harry go. A familiar lump began to rise in his throat and he swallowed hard.

"I’m good." He managed to reply.   
A younger boy suddenly shot past them into the hall shouting "get a room" and Draco heard someone wolf whistling at them. He's expected worse if he'd been honest.

"It's impossible to keep a secret in this place." Harry murmured and his smile set Draco's nerves alight.

He felt overcome with relief and joy. Harry was fine that everyone knew. He hadn't denied Draco was his boyfriend even though they hadn't confirmed it to each other yet. Draco wanted Harry all to himself suddenly and his thoughts wandered to the cosy, fire light room on the seventh floor  
.  
"The Room of Requirement is still our little secret....." He whispered feeling reckless and daring.

A thrill ran through his entire body when Harry reached out and took him by the hand and lead him to the staircase. The hall behind them erupted into a noise of wolf whistles and clapping. He heard some people hissing and jeering but the sound bounced off their bubble as they practically ran up to their secret place, leaving the crowds behind them - on the other side of their bubble.


	28. Chapter Twenty-Nine

The following week passed in as much of a blur as the previous one. The whole school was buzzing with the news of Harry and Draco and Harry had been fending off questions from Lavender and Pavarti all week.

"How long has it been going on?"

"Was it all an act when you said you hated each other all that time?"

"Is it true about Draco's piercings?"

He'd given up trying to get rid of them in the end and decided it was much funnier to   
elaborate some pretty ridiculous 'facts' for them to keep them all occupied.

"Which piercing? He's got a few." 

Even Draco had laughed when he told him that one. It had been wonderful being able to spend so much time together with out hiding or worrying who was watching. They'd continued with their new seating arrangements in classes they shared and spent every spare second together. Harry felt a bit bad that he'd hardly seen Ron and Hermione all week. They'd joined Harry and Draco again a couple of times in the library to do some homework along with Blaise. Goyle had dropped by on one occasion but he didn't stay he just picked up a book from Blaise. Harry couldn't help it - he still couldn't stand Goyle the big oaf.

Dean, Seamus and Neville had even been cool about it, much to Harrys relief. When they entered the dorms after the news had broke, Dean gave Harry a slap on the back and told him he knew Harry was gay. He’d even won ten galleons from Seamus betting Harry would be out of the closet by Christmas. It really did seem like everyone knew apart from Harry (and Neville. He was shocked but happy for Harry all the same.)

As Harry made his way down to Quidditch practice Thursday evening he was, for the first time ever, wishing he was somewhere else. Most evenings he and Draco had snuck off to the Room of Requirement together and enjoyed the peace and quiet in their cosy hidden spot.

They hadn't done anything more than kiss since they'd gotten a little carried away the first time Harry found the room. The kisses were admittedly more than a few pecks however. They both usually ended up shirtless and sweaty and Harry head spun whenever he thought of their time in their room. He wanted so badly to take things further, to touch and feel Draco in ways he'd previously never even dared to imagine. But his nerves always overtook him and he could never take that terrifying step. He wondered if Draco felt the same or if he was happy with just the hot and heavy kisses.

He was distracted in his flying during practice and Ginny almost knocked him off his broom launching the quaffle close to his head. 

As they finished and the team made their way down to the changing rooms Harry decided to do a few more laps with the snitch to make up for his poor performance. After twenty minutes or so however he was even more eager to see Draco so he gave up and landed with a soft thud and made his way to the changing rooms.

"Training for the ballet Potter?"   
The familiar voice made him jump out of skin - he thought he was alone.

"Where have you been hiding?" He asked Draco who was striding across the pitch with his perfect smile in place.

"I was watching from the stands. Your flying was shite tonight what's the matter with you?." He asked laughing. 

"Other things on my mind." Harry replied and pulled Draco in for a kiss. 

The familiar surge of lust powered through Harry and he balled his fists on Draco's chest, fighting back the waves of desire crashing over him. He pulled back taking a deep breath, his badly concealed longing banging at his chest. 

"Come on I need to get changed." He said and pulled Draco along with him in to the changing rooms. As he began to change out of his Quidditch robes Draco continued to tease him about his pitiful flying. Harry pulled his sweater over his head and threw it at Draco who was sat opposite on one of the benches. He caught it as it hit his face and paused for a moment before throwing it back at Harry. 

As the two of them laughed Harry carried on stripping and it wasn't until he was down to his boxers he realised he was almost naked. Draco has seen him with no shirt on loads of times in the past couple of weeks but below the waist had so far been kept under wraps. 

He suddenly felt exposed and very self-conscious. Especially considering Draco was fully dressed. He even had his scarf on. He looked at Draco's expression and saw his eyes travelling up and down, drinking in Harry's body. 

"I'm going to get a quick shower." Harry said and his voice cracked. 

He wanted desperately to ask Draco to join him. The word were on the tip of his tongue - just ask him. He could feel the heat from Draco's lust rolling off him in waves and he knew he'd say yes. But he just couldn't do it. He turned and walked over to the cubicles cursing himself internally.

It wasn't until he was inside the shower with the curtains drawn that he stripped completely and turned on the tap letting the hot water run over him. He tipped his head back and let the water wash over his face. Knowing Draco was just the other side of the curtain was setting his nerves into a frenzy and he wished he had found the courage to ask him to join him - some bloody Gryffindor he was.  
As images of what they could be doing filled his head he felt the blood rush to his cock. A small groan escaped his mouth and he was just wondering how best to make a move on Draco once he got out when a whisper behind him sent a shiver up his spine.

"Shall I scrub your back for you Potter?" 

Harry's head almost spun off his neck and he turned to find Draco climbing into the cubicle and closing the curtain behind him. He was completely naked and Harry's eyes travelled of their own accord down Draco's body. From Draco's chest, now wet from the flow of the shower, further down following the small trail of hair from his belly button and all the way down to his cock, which was as hard as Harry's.   
Harry swallowed loudly and words completely abandoned him. He watched as Draco picked up the shower gel and squirted a large amount on to the palm of his hands, which Harry noticed were shaking. He rubbed his palms together holding Harry's gaze and the anticipation was almost painful. 

Taking a small step closer Draco ran his hands over Harry's chest and the shower gel became a lather. He rubbed and massaged sending his hands over Harry's shoulders and down his back, slowly tracing his fingers down Harry's spine until they slipped over his arse, squeezing gently and pulling Harry closer to him.

The sensation of their wet naked bodies pressed up together was incredible and a blinding arousal tore through Harry. He gripped Draco firmly by his hair at the back of his head and tipped him back kissing him deeply. Their tongues entwined and their cocks bumped together and Harry was savouring the feelings and sensations that threatened to tear him apart.

Lowering his head Draco placed hard wet kissed along Harry's collarbone and his hands moved up to Harry's waist as he gently turned him so he was facing the other way. He continued his delivery of kisses along Harry's shoulders and back, nibbling and sucking as he went. 

With his senses on overload Harry tipped his head back on to Draco's shoulder, surrendering to Draco's will. He liked Draco taking charge and not knowing what he was going to do next was setting Harry's nerves on fire.

As Draco's hands slipped slowly from Harry's waist and down towards his cock Harry felt it twitch with anticipation. He wanted Draco to touch him and pull him apart with pleasure but he couldn't say it out loud. Draco's hands were moving agonisingly slow, cautious and nervous, sending Harry's lust to boiling point.

A load moan escaped his mouth and it seemed to spur Draco on. He whispered Harry's name into his ear and it send shivers rippling through Harry's body. As Draco's hand finally slipped over Harry's cock, taking it firmly but gently Harry let himself go. He arched his back forcing his arse against Draco and he could feel his hard length pressing up against his bare cheeks. This was what Harry had been day dreaming about all week and even his most wild fantasies didn't do justice to the feelings racing through him. 

As Draco's hand began to move up and down Harry's knees felt as though they might buckle. He threw a hand out on to the cold tiles of the cubicle wall to steady himself and the other hand reached around and took a hold of Draco's. He gripped him tightly as Draco's other hand worked on pulling him apart.   
Electric pulses of arousal tore through Harry, racing up and down his spine and erupting in his groin. He ran his hands over any part of Draco he could find as Draco sped up, his hands moving with a brutal pace.

Harry's hips began moving with a mind of their own and he was rocking his arse back and forth with Draco's shaft sliding in between his cheeks as the water ran down off them.

Tracing a line up Harry's neck with his tongue and nibbling his ear Harry heard Draco let out a long moan and his hand moved faster, pulling Harry to the edge. He pushed his hips deeper forcing his cock further between Harry's arse cheeks. The feel of Draco's breath across his ear mixed with the sensation of his hard cock thrusting against his arse pushed Harry over the edge with a brutal force and he let out a strangled cry as he came hard in Draco's hand. His head tipped back and he found Draco's mouth with his own. 

As Draco pushed his cock harder into Harry's back, Harry was overcome with a need to please Draco. He wanted to make Draco feel as undone as he felt right now. He turned swiftly to face him with the tremors from his orgasm still rippling through him. The sight of Draco's pale wet face full of desire made Harry's bones ache. He stepped closer and pushed Draco back against the cold wall and ran his hand down his chest, tracing his fingers through the line of wet hair down his stomach and gripped Draco's hard shaft. 

He felt it twitch in his hand and just had time to notice it was slightly longer than his own before Draco caught his mouth in a wet kiss. They were under the flow of the water now and Harry moved his hand the way he would on himself. Hoping to god he was doing something right his doubts were laid to rest when he heard a moan escape Draco's lips. 

"Fuck Potter..."

His breathing was ragged and his hand gripped Harry's arse with an almost painful force pulling them closer. Harry's forced his hand to move quicker and he pressed fast wet kisses up Draco's neck to his ear.

"Draco," Harry moaned and the word dissolved in the air as Harry felt Draco tremble in his hands as he climaxed. He slowed his hand down as he watched the last tremors of Draco's orgasim shudder through him and he emptied himself into Harry's hand. 

He slowly ran his hands down Draco's chest and across his hip before taking his hand and grasping it in his own. He could feel Draco trembling as much as he was.   
Standing under the hot flow of water they looked into each other's eyes and their breathing was loud and laboured. 

"That was....." Breaking the silence Draco smiled at Harry as he whispered, unable to finish his sentence. 

"I know." Harry replied. He knew exactly what Draco meant. He just didn't have the words to describe it either.


	29. Chapter Thirty

"What are you grinning about?" Theo asked as he threw himself down next to Draco on the couch in their common room.

"Take one guess..."

Blaise’s voice came from behind them and Draco turned to see his friend dropping his bag before walking around and taking a seat opposite them in a large armchair.

"I am not grinning." Draco lied. 

He knew he'd had a stupid grin on his face all morning - all week actually. In fact he had been in a constant state of annoying happiness since he and Harry had first kissed. The grin currently on his face was a due to a flash back of the previous evening with him and Harry covered in soap suds in the prefect bathroom. 

"You've been grinning like an idiot for weeks now Draco and it doesn't take a Ravenclaw to figure out why." Blaise said simply, fixing Draco with that knowing look that always made Draco feel like his friend could read his mind.

"So what's happening with you and Potty then? He your boyfriend now?" Theo asked casually while flicking through a Quidditch magazine someone had left lying about. 

Draco's stomach tightened uncomfortably. 

"Erm, no not exactly. We haven't really talked about it. We're just, you know, seeing how it goes." Draco mumbled. He never mumbled. He always knew exactly what he wanted to say and exactly how to say it - except when it came to Harry. He sat up straighter and cleared his throat. 

"So you mean you're too scared to ask him?" Theo quipped still not looking up from his magazine. Draco caught Blaise's eye and he was smirking. 

"No. I am not scared. If I wanted to have that conversation with Potter I would have it. Not that it's any of your business Theo. You just worry about how you're going to get in to Bulstrode’s knickers - or not as I hear it. She still got you stranded on first base?" Draco threw back. 

He felt a small pang of satisfaction as Theo threw him a frosty glare before chucking the magazine and stomping off. 

"Nosy bastard." Draco muttered. 

He hadn't lied to Theo, he wasn't scared of asking Harry to be his boyfriend - he was terrified. Blaise stood and moved over to the now empty seat beside Draco.

"You, are lying out of your arse Draco Malfoy. You do want Potter to be your boyfriend. And you're absolutely petrified to ask him."

Fucking know it all.

Draco sighed loudly and threw his head back against the back of the couch.

"Come on - I haven't got time to dance around this all morning we've got History of Magic in 20 minutes. What's bothering you?" Blaise asked, but there was no impatience in his voice. 

Draco threw a glance sideways to his friend and knew he was right - there was no point dancing around it - Blaise would get it out of him in the end.

"I want Harry to be my boyfriend - officially - but I'm scared he won't feel the same." He said, his words tumbling out at speed. "Things are getting more - physical , which is great but I've no idea what to do if things get any further and I'm absolutely shitting myself about what he wants to do. And what he wants me to do. And how the whole bloody thing is meant to go." 

He sucked in a deep breath and threw his head against the back of the couch again. He thought saying his fears out loud was meant to make him feel better but hearing them voiced actually made him feel worse.

"Right," he heard Blaise say as he closed his eyes trying to slow down his breathing, "we'll start with the easy one. You and Potter are practically boyfriends now anyway. He'll probably be relieved if you ask him to make it official and save him having to do it. As for the sex stuff - nobody can answer that for you Draco. You said things are getting more physical - well then just let things carry on as they are and it'll happen naturally."

Draco took in another steady breath before he turned to look at Blaise. His face was a mixture of concern and sympathy. Merlin, I must look completely pathetic thought Draco.

"And what about the - you know- the mechanics of it all? As in who puts what where?" He asked and Blaise chuckled.

"I've no idea about all that I'm afraid, you're the gay one, I'm sure you'll figure it out."

Draco already knew what he wanted. When he found himself day dreaming about finally taking that terrifying step with Harry he always imagined giving himself to Harry, letting Harry break him apart with hard, powerful thrusts. In short, Draco wanted to bottom. But he had no idea if this was what Harry wanted. Or if he'd even thought about it. 

"Let it happen naturally." He repeated Blaise's words out loud.

"Best way I reckon." Blaise shrugged.

May be he was right. Draco had to admit that the physical side seemed to come so easy to them both. It was as though some external force came into play whenever they were close. Once they were alone Draco abandoned all though and just acted on pure impulse, reacting to Harry's moans of pleasure or the arch of his back and the eagerness of his kisses. 

Sitting up suddenly Draco resolved to take his friends advice. Let the sex stuff happen naturally and try not to over think it. 

As for the so called "easy" bit - he wasn't sure how he was going to approach the subject but he was determined Harry would officially be his boyfriend by the end of the day.

"Come on then - let’s get to class so Binns can lecture us in to a coma." He said, tapping Blaise on the knee as he stood to grab his bag. Blaise followed him and picked up his own bag as they made their way out of the common room.

"When are you going to tell him the other thing?" Blaise asked as they walked out in to the dungeons long dark corridor.

"What other thing?" Draco asked, frowning at the floor.

"That you're in love with him." Blaise said simply. 

Draco felt his heart actually drop about three feet landing somewhere near his knees. He was still hanging on, terrified to let go and let himself fall. He still wasn't sure Harry would want to catch him. He didn't answer Blaise, he carried on walking silently beside him. The thought of seeing Harry in class was the only thing making him put one foot in front of the other. The only thing keeping him going. This thing with Harry, whatever it was, had become everything to Draco. His reason for getting out of bed in the morning, for going to class and throwing himself back into the world again. But it could also be the one thing that actually breaks him


	30. Chapter Thirty-One

"I still can't get used to hearing you call him Draco." 

Neville laughed as he moved about the dorm getting ready at a leisurely pace. He, Harry and Ron had a free period first thing before History of Magic and they were making the most of it lazing about after a lie in. 

"Yeah cos that’s the weird part of all this Nev, not seeing them snogging or holding hands." Ron laughed.

"You've never seen us snogging." Harry argued as a blush worked its way across his cheeks. 

He and Draco were pretty private and avoided any public displays of affection - agreeing couples who were attached at their mouth in front of their fellow students were vomit inducing. But he couldn't promise they hadn't maybe gotten carried away once or twice?

"Yeah I have unfortunately. When you thought no one was looking. I saw you outside the Prefects’ bathroom last week when I was doing my Prefect rounds." 

He pulled a face that suggested it wasn't something he was keen to witness again anytime soon.

"Oh right yeah...' Harry mumbled as very graphic flashbacks from what they had been doing inside the bathroom only moments before flashed through his mind.

In the weeks since they had taken the plunge and moved on from dry humping and heavy petting and become a lot more physical in the changing rooms showers, the boy’s inhibitions had continued to lower. They now spent the majority of their time alone naked. Hidden in the Room of Requirement or on particularly daring evenings when they felt risky they would take long hot baths together in the Prefects bathroom where they were less likely to be disturbed. Although Harry had to admit the possibility of being caught did add to the thrill.

"You seem happy anyway." Neville said quietly, bringing Harry's attention back into the room.

"Wha - happy? Erm, yeah, s'pose I am." He said sheepishly. He pulled his jumper over his head to hide his blush. He knew his face betrayed the depths of his happiness and he wasn't ready for everyone to know just how much this tryst with Draco meant to him.

"So, is he your boyfriend now then?" Neville asked innocently as he packed his books into his bag. Ron's head lifted from sorting his own bag and he surveyed Harry curiously, obviously keen to know the answer to that question as well. 

So was Harry.

"I don't really know." He answered honestly. They still hasn't had any conversation about the specifics or decided on a label for whatever they were. They knew they were more than friends but neither one of them seemed to want to be the one to broach the subject.

"You scared to ask him?" Ron asked with an amused smile on his face. Harry's eyebrows shot up and he gave his best friend a warning look before retorting,

"Let's not go there with being scared to admit our feelings for someone ey Ron? How long did it take you to finally be honest with Hermione?" He teased and Ron threw a balled up scrap of parchment at his head.

"So you are scared then?" Ron persisted, picking up on Harry's accidental admission. 

"No, it just hasn't come up." Harry argued, which wasn't really a lie. He had wanted to bring it up a dozen times but fear and a huge lump in his throat always stopped him.

"Do you want him to be your boyfriend?" Ron went on, and he did Harry the courtesy of not looking at him when he asked.

Yes. Yes he did want Draco to be his boyfriend. More than anything. He was petrified of the emotions that had crept in since their night on the ward and although he sometimes wondered if Draco felt the same, pride and fear kept Harry from properly showing the depths of his feelings. He didn't quite know how to say all of this to Ron and Neville however.

"I wouldn't mind." He muttered vaguely. 

"You practically are anyway aren't you? I mean you spend most nights together studying or God knows what else don't you? And neither of you are snogging anyone else, are you? It's just a matter of making it officially really." Ron said with a matter of fact tone.

If only it were that simple. Harry had no idea how to make it official and was worried he'd make a fool of himself.

"He's changed so much hasn't he?" Neville said as he sat down on his bed and placed his bag on his lap. He was frowning slightly and looked at Harry with an expression Harry couldn't place.

"Yeah, he really has. He's still the same spoilt pampered Malfoy," he laughed, remembering his refusal to get dry with a Gryffindor towel after their bath a few nights ago and almost freezing to death air drying.

"But yeah, mostly he's changed. He's quieter, more thoughtful. He's humbled so much since the war." Harry confirmed, a surge of emotions swelling in his chest as he thought of Draco. 

All the old Malfoy traits he hated - his arrogance and feelings of self-importance and grandeur were no longer there. But he still had that classic Malfoy drawl if someone pissed him off. It was strange now, without all the sneering and maliciousness Harry found the drawl to be endearing.

"He's changed more since you two - well started whatever it is you started." Ron observed and Harry frowned as Neville nodded in agreement.

"How do you mean?" He asked.

"He was so quiet when we first got back. He seems a bit more sociable now. And he smiles and laughs a lot more. I don't think I'd even seen him smile before - not properly." Neville explained and looked at Ron for confirmation. 

Harry looked at his best friend as the butterflies in his stomach collided. Could he really be the reason Draco was smiling so much lately?

"Yeah he does laugh and that a lot more. And he seems less tense, you know." Ron agreed.

"A good shag does that to you I suppose." He added grinning wickedly. Harry's head snapped up and he almost swallowed his own tongue.

"We haven't - I mean not properly - well we've done, you know, stuff..."

He was stuttering and his palms began to sweat. Swallowing thickly he wiped his hands down his trouser legs. Why was he always so embarrassed when the topic of sex came up.?

"Aahh 'stuff'. Can't beat a good bit of 'stuff'" Neville laughed and Ron nodded his head. Harry knew Ron and Hermione had done a lot more than stuff, losing their virginities to one another the summer after the battle. 

"So you haven't, you know..." Ron asked uncomfortably. He was as red as his hair and Harry couldn't help but laugh.

"No. We haven't had sex." He said and he felt the familiar tightening below his stomach as the subject once again burst into his head.

He was trying to act nonchalant in front of the lads but in all honesty he had begun to lose sleep over it. 

Whenever he allowed his mind to wander, images of he and Draco in various positions would flicker and alternate, never solidifying or settling. Sometimes he would see himself on top of Draco, thrusting into him and watching Draco unravel beneath him. Other times he would be surrendering himself to Draco, his head thrown back as Draco pounded into Harry. Each scenario was as terrifying and exciting as the other.

He had no idea what Draco's thoughts on the whole thing were - whether he even thought about the two of them going that far? Or how they would do it if they did?  
He realised he was stood still, arms flopped by his side as Ron and Neville made their way to the door.

"You coming mate?" Ron asked as he held the door open. He looked at Harry and his brows knitted together. He tapped Neville on the shoulder and told him they'd follow him down. As he closed the door he dropped his bag and leaned on Harry's four poster.

"You're shitting yourself aren't you? About all the sex stuff?"

Harry let out a deep low breath. "Yeah."

"I know how you feel mate. I was bricking it before me and Hermione slept together." Ron said sympathetically as he folded his arms.

"No, you don't really." Harry said and his voice was a bit shaky. Ron frowned at him in question and he went on, feeling relieved to finally voice all his fears.

"With you and Hermione you knew what to do, what you both wanted, how it all works."

"Yeah, just about." Ron laughed.

"Well I've no fucking clue Ron. Which of us is meant to - you know? And who is supposed to - well...you know? What will he want to do? What will he want me to do? I'm going to end up making an absolute prat of myself." He said as he ran his fingers through his hair. 

"Right, yeah. Hadn't thought of all that." Ron said quietly, obviously making sense of Harry's vague ramblings.

"Honestly mate, it's all just instinct. You can't plan that sort of stuff, you just do what comes natural and what feels right when you get there. Worrying about it will make it more stressful than it needs to be."

He leaned over and gripped Harry's shoulder gently.

"Anyway, don't you need to have another conversation with him first?"

"Do I?" Harry's stomach tightened.

"Well it's obvious you want him to be your boyfriend. And so does he. Just ask him and put the both of you out of your misery." Ron laughed. "The sex stuff will sort itself out. He seems just as keen as you are mate, so I'm sure you'll get carried away in the end and it'll all work out fine. If you like each other as much as you both seem to, it'll work out. Trust me."

He picked up his own bag and tossed Harry's over to him.

Hearing Ron as a sensible and mature voice of reason was enough to shake Harry out of his panic and he stared at his best mate in slight wonder. Draco wasn't the only one who's changed since the war. 

"Come on, we're going to be late." Ron said and Harry followed him out of the dorms smiling. Even with the prospect of imminent and very awkward conversations, the thought of seeing Draco's face in History of Magic put a spring in his step and he made his way out of the common room with a huge smile on his face.


	31. Chapter Thirty-Two

Draco hoped he looked casual and relaxed as he stood outside History of Magic 20 minutes later. Harry came walking down the corridor with Weasley and Granger and as his eyes landed on Draco he threw Draco a wide beautiful smile and for a moment, Draco could almost believe that Harry felt just as strongly as he did.   
Their small group began chatting about class but Draco was too distracted looking at Harry to pay any proper attention. He swiftly moved from standing in between Weasley and Granger so that he was by Draco's side. As if there were magnets - drawn to each other. As Harry's arm brushed up against his Draco smiled that such a small simple touch still set his skin on fire and made his nerves sing. They'd been naked together almost every evening for weeks now and still these innocent touches sent shivers all over Draco's body. 

As the crowd began to file into the class he blindly followed, paying more attention to Harry who caught up and was walking by his side than where he was going. Harry seemed distracted to and had a small vacant smile on his face as though his thoughts were miles away. Draco nudged him gently as they made their way automatically to the desk at the back of the class where they'd sat together now for weeks.

As they began unpacking their bags Draco couldn't help throwing glances to his right every few seconds and was thrilled that Harry was looking at him every time.   
This was getting ridiculous now. It must so obvious how he felt towards Harry. Draco felt as if his heart were singing so loud that everyone could hear it. He wouldn't be able to keep this in for much longer, he thought. He would break and it would spill out eventually.

He looked up in time to see Theo making his way past their desk, with a look on his face that told Draco he was about to regret pissing Theo off earlier.

"You sitting with us Draco? Or you going to sit at the back and hold hands with your boyfriend?"

As Pansy laughed loudly Draco felt his stomach crash and he sat down quickly as his knees began to shake. The bastard - he was going to make a complete twat of him in front of everyone - in front of Harry.

To distract himself Draco began fussing with his books and ignored Pansy as she stomped past, probably throwing him a scornful look in the process. He racked his brains for a witty retort but came up empty. How can he not have a snarky comeback - he practically invented them. Instead his mind abandoned him and he felt a cold sweat break out over his body.

"He is your boyfriend now isn't he Draco?" Theo went on and Draco wanted to hex his mouth shut but he was too busy wishing the world would hurry up and swallow him. 

This wasn't how it was supposed to happen. He wanted to ask Harry how he felt when they were alone and try to gauge Harry's reaction before bringing up the boyfriend subject. He certainly didn't want his hand being forced in the middle of History of Magic. What if Harry rejected him? He doubted Binn’s would even notice if he jumped out of the window but the rest of the class might…

He heard Weasley telling Theo to piss off and felt a rush of gratitude to the big ginger weasel. He fiddled with his quill as Theo stalked off to take his seat next to Pansy and couldn't bring himself to turn and look at the boy beside him. He knew looking into those green eyes would be his undoing and he was attempting to be nonchalant and act as though Theo's words hadn't bothered him. But he was chewing his lip and it was obvious by his silence Theo had hit a nerve. Fuck.

"Ignore him Draco he's just being a prat." Harry said softly beside him and he managed to nod in agreement. 

But really he wanted to scream no. I don't want to ignore it. I want you to be my boyfriend and be mine forever I'm just too much of a fucking coward to ask you.  
Instead he just sat there, rigid, and wishing they were hidden in the Room of Requirement so they could talk properly without the risk of Pansy or Theo over hearing him asking Harry to be his boyfriend and Harry laughing at him and telling him to piss off…

"Unless you want to talk about it?" Harry suddenly blurted out and his head spun to look at Harry's face, which was awash with anxiety and uncertainty. 

Did he want this too but didn't know how to ask? It seemed too good to be true?

"Okay..." Draco replied, letting Harry go on before saying anything that might make him sound like a complete idiot and betray the depth of his feeling. Keeping his guard up was a natural defense, one he had relied heavily on when faced with sharing a home with The Dark Lord. But Harry had a knack for knocking Draco's wall down like a rogue bludger.

"Well, the whole friends label doesn't really seem to fit anymore does it?" Harry asked and Draco could hear the tension in his voice. He was certainly nervous about something. 

No, Draco thought, the word friend didn’t seem to encompass all the emotions Harry evoked in him. The feelings he experienced with Harry were like nothing he had ever experienced before.

"Not really," Draco agreed and smiled as he thought friends was a very loose term to begin with. They had left the 'mortal enemies' zone and wandered accidentally to 'civil acquaintances' without ever meaning to. But from there they had jumped right over the 'friend' zone and landed right in the middle of 'person I have hot shower sex with' zone and Draco had no idea how any of it had even happened. 

"I can't say I've snogged or taken baths with any of my other friends Potter." He laughed. He'd never felt anything, for anyone the way he did for Harry. As they held each other's gaze Draco knew he wouldn't have the nerve to do this, to ask Harry to be his. He felt too much. His feeling were too raw and too near the surface. If he allowed them to start spilling over now he would do more than just Harry to make this official. He couldn't trust himself to keep this casual, keep it light, and not scare Harry away. He stared deep in to the green emeralds in front of him and willed Harry to do it, take the plunge for both of them. He had his acceptance ready on his tongue, always ready to say yes to anything Harry wanted from him.

Letting out a fast blow of breath Harry blinked before asking, "So do you want to be my boyfriend then or what?" And he fixed Draco with a look that rendered Draco momentarily speechless. 

Using all the self-restraint his could muster not to jump on top of Harry Draco smiles as he let Harry's words sink in "I thought you'd never ask Potter, you prat." He laughed as he reached under the table and took hold of Harry's hand. He was trying remain calm and relaxed but inside he was dancing. 

He sat in a blissful daze for the rest of the lesson and while he usually paid attention and took plenty of notes, he allowed himself to be distracted by Harry today. The held hands for the rest of the lesson and Draco swallowed a huge lump in his throat every time he pictured Harry's face in the moments before Draco agreed to be his boyfriend. He looked like a man on the edge of the world and Draco’s reply would either pull him back or push him violently over the edge. As he let the fact that they had done it – they were official – sink in Draco caught himself with a stupid grin on his face that he couldn’t even bring himself to remove. He had never felt so content in his whole life and he gave Harry's hand a small squeeze beneath the table. He never wanted to let go.

Once they escaped Binn’s classroom with everyone looking like they had just woken up (most of them probably had) they made their way up the corridor and Harry took a hold of Draco's hand again as they followed Blaise and Weasley. Draco's stomach jolted slightly- they had never held hands publically before. Everyone knew of course that something was going on, a few people had made it clear they were not happy, but still protected inside their bubble Draco found it easy to ignore any negativity.   
He glanced at Harry and he looked relaxed and not at all bothered that people were looking at them as they walked hand in hand. 

Was it an innocent ignorance or did he genuinely not give a shit? Draco wasn’t sure but he felt safe and warm beside Harry. Blaise threw them a quick look back over his shoulder and a wicked grin spread across his face as he looked down and noticed they were holding hands. Draco would fill him in later when they were alone – although he probably already knew. The smart arse.

Distracted momentarily as he overheard Harry whispering to Granger beside him, Draco didn’t notice the two huge boys approaching him until one of them barged violently into him to his left, the other walking right in-between him and Harry and breaking their hold on one another.

His stomach clenched uncomfortably as he recognised the bigger, bulkier lad who had thrown a few insults and choice phrases at Draco whenever the opportunity presented over the past few months. Draco had learnt that this boy had lost his older brother at the hands of a Death Eater and he couldn’t’ honestly blame him for hating Draco. He quickly realised that by ignoring them and not taking the bait they eventually got bored for another few weeks. 

Waves of guilt washed over him and the mark on his left arm seemed to tingle.   
“Death Eater scum bag” the taller lad shot at Draco and Draco filched at his words rather than the physical force as he shoved against his shoulders. He wanted to yell at them, explain how he never wanted any of this, that he was stupid and scared and thought he had all the answers. But he knew none of them would ever understand. Just keep you head down and ignore them he told himself. He should have known of course that Harry fucking Potter never keeps his head down when presented with a fight.

He saw Harry turn quickly to face the two boys and for a moment he feared what they would do to him. The biggest one was twice Harry's size and even the smaller one looked pretty solid. Then his brain kindly reminded him that Harry had killed the most dangerous dark wizard the world had ever seen and two school yard bullies must seem like kittens to him.

His stomach still tightened as Harry spun instinctively to face the bullies and Draco closed his eyes in anticipation for what was to come.

oOo

“Watch where you’re going – and watch your fucking mouth unless you want me to hex it shut for you.” Harry heard himself say. His eyes flickered to Draco who was staring at the two idiots in front of them with a cold look of indifference plastered on his face. But Harry knew his face well enough now to notice the tightening of his jaw, the faint blush spreading across his cheeks and the hurt and anger in his eyes. 

Harrys anger burst to the surface suddenly and violently. He was ready to punch these two brutes the muggle way – he didn’t even need his wand. He hadn’t even raised his voice, his anger had flared past the point of fury. He felt a hand on his chest, trying to push him away from the two boys who had stopped and were now looking unsure of themselves at being confronted.

“Leave it Harry.” He heard Draco’s small voice beside him but he kept his gaze fixed on the larger of the two boys. 

He was about the same size as Dudley and could definitely kick Harry’s arse but Harry reckoned his anger would give him the edge. His fury was bubbling up inside him and the hurt on Draco’s face flashed in his mind again, fueling his hate-fire. He wanted one of them to start again so he could end them. He stepped towards them slowly, despite Draco’s hand pressing against his chest still. The boys both took a step away from Harry, looking rather taken aback. People obviously never usually stood up to them.

“You’re sticking up for him?” shouted the largest boy, “he’s a fucking death eater Potter! You of all people should hate his guts.” 

Harrys hand clenched around his wand.

“Was a Deatheater. And don’t tell me who I should and shouldn’t hate. Harry said firmly. He could fee Draco pushing against him but he was rooted to the spot. 

“He tried to kill you – and now what? You’re his body guard?” the other boy piped up. He was smaller than his friend and Harry was confident he could take him.

“He saved my life actually. And if you’re interested, I almost killed him once. So we’re pretty even on that front. Not that I need to explain myself to you two dip shits. But if I hear you, or anyone else for that matter, giving Draco shit again, I’ll hex you in to the middle of next week. “ he said firmly, staring at the big one and forcing himself not to blink.

The smaller boy took another step back and even had the grace to throw Draco an apologetic look but the bigger one was standing his ground and he puffed out his chest and he smirked down at Harry.

“Think you can take me Potter?” he laughed.

“Well I managed to kill Voldemort so you two idiots should be no problem.” He threw back.

That did it. The boys shoulders sagged and he flushed furiously as everyone around them sniggered. He began walking backwards, taking his friend with him and once he reached the end of the corridor stalked off with his tail between his legs.

“Fucking idiots.” Harry muttered as the small crown around them began to disperse. 

“Pair of muppets.” He heard Ron gumble behind him.

“Potter sticking up for his boyfriend? Very romantic.” There was no mistaking Notts voice and Harry took a deep breath, telling himself that hexing Nott would only make things worse.

“Piss off Theo, stop being such a dick.” Blaise shot at him as the crowds wandered away now that it was clear that there wasn’t going to be a duel to witness.

Harry turned to face Draco who was standing frozen at Harry’s sid frowning and looking at the floor. 

“You okay?” Harry asked, turning to take Dracos hand. To his surprise Draco flinched and pulled his hand away.

“You should have just left it Harry. You should have ignored them and not made a scene.” His voice was quiet and almost a whisper.

“Ignore them? You think I can ignore seeing people treat you like that?” he asked, not really meaning to raise his voice but some of the anger was still lingering and it sort of spilled over.

“Stop shouting.” Draco saud and for the first time he looked up at Harry and their eyes met.

Harry could see the hurt and embarrassment in Draco’s eyes , but even worse he could see that he believed what the boys had said and felt he deserved it. Grabbing Draco roughly by his sleeve Harry pulled him down the corridor to an empty classroom up ahead, ignoring Hermiones protests behind him.

He opened the door at the end of the corridor and pulled Draco inside, slamming and locking the door behind them.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Draco asked, pulling his arm free and spinning to face Harry.

“How often does this shit happen?” Harry demanded and didn’t bother to keep his voice down now that they were alone.

“What does it matter?” Draco asked shrugging, “if you ignore them the get bored and piss off.”

“No. If you ignore them they think they can get away with it and they’ll do it all the more. Pair of fucking scum bags. Is it just Gryffindors giving you trouble or are the other houses at it as wel?” 

He wanted a list of everyone who had upset Draco since coming back after the war so he could personally visit them and make sure they wont do it again.

Draco slumped in to an empty chair and his head fell in to his hands. As he ran his fingers through his hair he let out a long low sigh.

“Typical Potter, you think you have to rush in and save everyone all the time.”

He looked up and held Harry’s gaze. Harry was still shaking slightly with adrenaline and anger but his stomach still managed a back flip from Draco’s penetrating look. His words stung a little as he recalled Hermiones words from years back, telling him he had a saving people thing. What was so wrong with wanting to defend the people you care about?

He was about to ask Draco when he went on.

“There is always going to be someone wanting to have a go at me Harry and remind me I was Deatheater.” 

“Then I will always be there to hex their fucking legs off.”

Draco took a sharp breath and he looked at Harry with an expression Harry couldn’t identify in his current state.

“You can’t promise that Harry. And you cant fight everyone elses battles. I know what I’ve done and I know people are going to hate me for it.”

Harry wanted to shake Draco by the shoulders.

“You’ve made up for all the shitty things you did Draco and you’re still making up for it. And yes – I can promise you. I will always be here for you Draco. I wont ever let anyone hurt you.”

He looked into the pale beautiful face before him and realized that somewhere, somehow in the madness that had been the last few weeks, Draco had become the most important person in Harrys life. He had watched Ron and Hermione find happiness together and all his friends rebuild their lives after the war. And he had felt lost. Like he had been stumbling around in a dark room, looking for the door. Then in Draco showed up and switched on the light and everything started making sense. He breathed life back in to Harry and it was the most unexpected, unnerving and wonderful feeling Harry had ever had.

He meant it when he said he would never let anyone hurt Draco, he would fight anyone who tried. A realization hit Harry so suddenly it knocked the breath right out of his lungs. Between late night hot chocolates and shower sex - he’d fallen in love with Draco Malfoy

“I think I’ve fallen in love with you Draco.”

The word left his mouth before he even had time to think about it and he held his breath as he watched the words float across the room and sink in to Draco. He held Harrys gaze for a moment before slowly standing and walking around the desk, coming to a stop in front of Harry. He placed his hand slowly on Harry’s chest and it was trembling – or was that Harrys heart fluttering under Draco’s touch?

“I know I’ve fallen in love with you Harry. I’ve never known anything so surely in my life. It’s always been you.” He said as he leant in and placed a soft warm kiss to Harrys lips. Harrys heart felt so full it felt it might burst. He wrapped his arms around Draco tightly and promised to never let him go.


	32. Christmas

As he made his way down the seventh floor corridor Harry could barely believe it was Christmas Eve already. The past few months had rushed by in such a blur and he hadn't really had time to sit and digest it all. If someone had told him at the beginning of the school year that he would have a boyfriend by Christmas - and that boyfriend would be a Draco Malfoy he would have sent them packing to St Mungo's.  
But here he was, excitedly rushing to the Room of Requirement to spend the night - their first full night - together in their secret room. The castle was pretty much deserted with everyone going home for Christmas and Harry had waved Ron and Hermione off the day before as they left for the Burrow with Ginny. He felt bad missing Christmas at the burrow but he doubted either Mr or Mrs Weasley would welcome Draco with open arms and he wasn't ready to spend to so much time apart just yet. And he didn't care how pathetic that made him.

Since they had opened up and said I love you to one another Harry felt as though their relationship had taken a subtle change of direction. It was so nice knowing he had someone there, beside him, no matter what. He knew he would always have Ron and Hermione of course, but this was different. This was unique, and special. What he shared with Draco he hadn't shared with anyone else, they had an intimacy now and it made Harry's heart feel like bursting whenever he thought about it. And he still burned with an aching passion every time they were alone.

Tonight, he was planning on taking that intimacy and passion further, and finally have sex with Draco. Proper sex. Full sex. Not blow jobs or hand jobs or rushed frothing between classes. Finally and properly going all the way. They hadn't spoken about it but it was there in the air between them when he suggested to Draco that they spend the night together Christmas Eve so that they could wake up Christmas morning together.

"I'm not sleeping in Gryffindor Tower Potter. I’d rather sleep in Moaning Myrtle's cubicle."

"Well I was thinking the Room of Requirement actually but if you'd prefer the girls lav then that's fine." he joked.

Draco had shoved him laughing before his face had settled into a serious expression and Harry could see something burning in his eyes.

"Okay. So we'll be sleeping together then?" He asked and the double meaning was not lost on Harry.

"Yeah, if that's okay with you? If you want to I mean?" He wasn't asking about he sleeping arrangements.

"Yeah, yes. It would be perfect." Draco replied as he swallowed hard. 

So here Harry was, rushing after dinner to get their first so he could make sure everything was perfect for when Draco got there. His nerves where bouncing as he walked up and down the corridor waiting for the room to present itself when finally the familiar small wooden door appeared. 

As Harry made his way quickly inside he was momentarily stunned as he looked around at the room. The fire was crackling away as usual and there were two stocking hanging on the mantle. A Christmas tree stood to the right of the fireplace and was twinkling with actual fairies and other shiny Christmas baubles and ornaments. But the thing that caught Harry's eye was the enormous, four poster to the far left of the room. It had red hangings which were held back by green ties. Christmas colours, but also their colours Harry thought, thinking of Gryffindor and Slytherin. 

The room looked absolutely perfect and Harry wandered over to the bed and leaned against one of the posts to gather his nerves and calm his breathing. He didn't hear the door open behind him, or the footsteps padding towards him on the thick, plush carpet. But he felt warm arms wrap around him from behind and Draco's breath on the side of his neck as he pulled him in and whispered in his hear,

"This room really is magical."

He turned in Draco's arms so that they were facing and pulled him closer.

"I didn't see you at dinner?" He asked. 

"Wasn't hungry." Draco replied simply.

Now that they were here Harry had no idea what to do next. He took a deep breath and looked at Draco, who was biting his lip, obviously just as nervous and his heart gave a pang. He wanted this so badly, with every fibre of his being. He was scared, and excited, and aroused and nervous all in equal measure. But Draco licked his lips slowly, holding Harry's gaze, and arousal overtook him and he pulled Draco into plant a firm, warm kiss to his lips. It quickly intensified with the presence of the bed and the unspoken promise of what tonight meant was spurring Harry on. As Draco's mouth melted into his, their tongues dancing together deliciously Harry knew this would be perfect. They might not know what they were doing, but they'd get there together, and his fear subsided as he slowly pushed his pelvis against Draco, their rock hard lengths crashing together. 

Gripping Draco by his hips Harry turned him towards the bed and pushed, until Draco was half sat, half lying with Harry holding himself up over him. He broke their kiss to look down at the pale face beneath him, his grey eyes shining with lust and need.

"You okay?" Harry asked, cupping Draco's face with his hand.

"Yeah, you?" Draco asked breathlessly and Harry laughed quietly.

"I'm bloody fantastic." He replied honestly and resumed kissing Draco, moving so that they were lying flat on the bed.   
He supported most of his weight with his left arm, leaning over Draco and letting his other hand travel up and down the length of Draco's body. Draco's hands were travelling of their own accord and he gripped Harry's arse firmly, pulling them closer until their pelvises were crushed together. Running his hand under Harry's shirt Draco mumbled into Harry's mouth as they kissed.

"Take your clothes off..."

Harry reluctantly stopped kissing Draco but leaned up to quickly remove his top. He threw it to the floor as Draco did the same and was about the lean back down to kiss Draco when Draco placed a hand on Harry's chest and pushed him back. Leaning over he kissed a trail down Harry's torso, licking and sucking his nipples as he went.

"Fuck Draco," Harry moaned as he watched the blonde kissing his way down his tummy and towards the waistband of his jeans. Undoing his jeans quickly Draco yanked them down Harry's thighs and off his legs before throwing them to join their shirts on the floor. As he ran his hands up Harry's thighs he slowly peeled off his boxers shorts, allowing his erection to spring free. Harry's back arched off the bed in anticipation and as Draco slowly leant down over his cock, looking up the length of Harry's body and gazing into Harry's eyes, harry heard himself moan,

"Draco...?" It sounded like a plea and Draco answer it graciously as he took Harry's cock in his mouth and began a slow torturous rhythm. Harry laced his fingers into Draco's hair as he moved up and down the length of Harry's shaft and each time his tongue flicked over the head, Harry would cry out.

He would come soon if Draco kept this up and this wasn't how it was supposed to end tonight. Sitting up, he pulled Draco towards him by the back of his neck and rolled them over so he was back on top again. The constant change in domination was always a thrill for Harry and he enjoyed taking change once more, watching   
Draco come undone beneath him.

He fumbled with the buckle of Draco's belt, grateful when Draco took over and quickly discarded his own jeans and under wear in one swift motion.   
Harry wasted no time in taking Draco in his mouth and brought his hands up to cup Draco's balls at the same time, massaging in time with each stroke of his tongue.  
He heard Draco moan unintelligible words above him and looked up to see Draco's head tipped back, his eyes closed and his mouth open. The sight made Harry's cock twitch.

"God, I want you so bad..." He whispered nuzzling Draco's crotch. 

He wanted Draco, to be inside Draco and make Draco's world spin with hard, powerful thrusts. Would this be what Draco wanted? Would he let him? 

Harry let his tongue travel slowly down Draco's cock and down over his balls. 

Summoning every ounce of courage he could find, he gently pushed Draco's legs up and bent them at the knee as he dipped his head lower, finding Draco's arse with his tongue. He heard a gasp and paused, waiting to see if Draco would tell him stop. Instead he felt hands grasping his hair, gently pushing his head and encouraging him.

Elated and feeling his arousal spike, Harry slowly traced his tongue around Draco's entrance, sucking gently.

"Oh fuck Harry, that's...."

Draco's words dissolved in the hair as Harry thrust his tongue deeper. He brought his hand up to stroke himself, feeling the blood pumping to his cock with a force that was making him dizzy. He'd never felt so turned on in his whole life. He could feel Draco's arse yielding to his touch and as his moans of pleasure grew louder, Harry followed his instinct and slowly brought his finger up to meet his tongue.  
"Oh god, oh god Harry...." Draco moaned as Harry gently pressed his finger against Draco's arse. 

"Are you okay?" He said, his voice barely more than a growl as he looked up to see Draco's face. He was flushed all the way down his neck to his chest and his lips were slightly parted, his breath coming in short sharp pants.

"Yes, I am. Do it Harry. I want you to do it."

Harry's cock was now aching, he had reached a peak of arousal Draco had barely touched him yet. Tentatively, with care not to hurt Draco, he slipped his finger inside. Draco was hot and tight around him and he looked up as he heard a strangled moan fall from Draco's lips.

"Draco...?"

"Don't stop," Draco panted and he was clutching the bed sheets with his fists.

Oh god, Harry could come just looking at him and the feel of Draco enveloping his finger was making his cock throb. His slowly moved his finger as he lowered his head down to take Draco's cock back into his mouth. He wanted this to feel amazing, for Draco to torn apart by pleasure so that Harry could put his back together, then break him again.

As he took Draco's cock in as far as his gag reflex would allow, he felt Draco's arse begin to relax and slowly, he added another finger.

"Fuck, fuck Harry that's amazing. Oh my..."

Draco was writhing under Harry's touch and as his cock gave another painful throb, Harry could Iain no longer. He slowly extracted his fingers and crawled up the bed, hovering over Draco. Before he could speak, Draco pulled his face down and their mouths crashed together, a hot, frantic battle of lips and tongues. Harry's hips began moving without his permission and he found his cock brushing against Draco's arse as Draco drew his legs up.

"Is it okay this way?" He asked, petrified of Draco saying no. And also of him saying yes.

"Yes," Draco breathed, "I want you to fuck me Harry. I wanted this for so long. Please, please...." His words were lost as he pulled Harry closer, kissed a trial from his ears down to his neck. 

"Fuck," breathed harry, this was it. He was going to do it. He forgot how to breathe, how to move his own limbs, he wasn't even sure of his own name anymore. But Draco kept whispering it to him breathlessly so that helped. Grabbing his wand from the pillow he quickly slicked his fingers with a warm lubricant and coated his cock with it. Just the feel of his own hands, warm and slick set electric bolts of pleasure up Harry's spine. He moved himself so that the head of his cock was teasing Draco's arse. With one last look into the grey eyes beneath him, harry slowly pushed, feeling the head breach Draco's hole. He paused as Draco winched. He closed his eyes for a second then when he opened them, holding Harry's gaze fiercely, he thrust his hips slightly up, taking more harry inside him.

"Oh my - fuck Draco." Harry breathed and he bit down hard on his lower lip. He needed to move, the sensation was overwhelming him. He needed to thrust hard into Draco and feel his warm tight arse around him. He pushed again and as Draco pushed back, he was suddenly in, all the way to his pubic bone. He froze for a moment, letting the feelings wash over him. Trying hard to steady his breath he reached down and gripped Draco's hand. 

"Move Harry, I need you to move..." Draco moaned and he tipped his hips up, causing a blinding heat to tear through Harry. He began to thrust, losing himself in a steady rhythm and gripping Draco's thighs tightly. He hitched Draco's knees slightly and held them up, allowing him to thrust deeper. 

Draco seemed to like this and Harry's stomach tightened as he listened to Draco elicit some delicious sounding moans. Harry couldn't have stopped thrusting is a herd of hippogriffs came bounding in the room. He threw his head back and closed his eyes, sweat was beading on his face and down his chest and he could feel the pleasure building in the pit of his stomach. He had no idea how long they had been going for: minutes, hours, decades? 

Opening his eyes he looked down to see Draco staring at him, unblinking while stroking his own cock. The sight tipped Harry over the edge and he gripped Draco's thighs with a brutal force as he let his orgasm spill out. His whole body shook and the pleasure was unrelenting, crashing over him wave after wave. He heard a cry and wasn't sure if it was him or Draco but as he looked down again, he could see Draco's hand moving in fast strokes, his come spilling out across his belly. He slowed down as his climax peaked then subsided and as the burst of light in front of his eyes faded, he fell, crashing on top of Draco with a force that made them both grunt.  
Neither of them spoke for a while, the only sound in the room was their heavy breathing. Finally, Harry located his voice box and he managed to lift himself up slightly to look into Draco's face.

"That was incredible Draco, I can't - are you okay?"

Draco was still panting slightly but a small smile was tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"I'm better than okay, I'm - I don't even know what I am."

Harry slowly pulled out Draco and they both winched slightly. They were sated and sticky and Draco cast a quick cleansing charm before rolling over to face harry. They lay on their side, face to face for a moment, letting everything they had done sink in.

"I never knew it would be like that." Harry said, his voice laced with amazement.

"Neither did I. I couldn't even see at one point, I thought my head was going to roll off my shoulders." Draco laughed.

Harry stroked small circles in the small of Draco's back, pulling him closer and pressing feather light kisses to his lips. He had a feeling, deep down in the pit of his stomach that was fluttering and threatening to break out and take over his whole body. He couldn't name it or place it, he must knew it was because of Draco. It had been there since that night at the hospital all those months ago. And maybe even before then. All the fights, the rivalry, the battles, it had all lead them to this point. Harry knew, in his heart of hearts he wouldn't change a moment of it all. He reached down and brought Draco's left arm up to his face, and pressed a gentle kiss to the mark that would remain there forever. Draco flinched but didn't pull away.

"I love you so much Draco."

He watched as Draco's breath caught in his chest, his hand came up and stroked Harry's face, his finger tracing slowly over his scar. They've both got scars, battle wounds, regrets. But now they had each other.

"I love you too Harry. More than you'll probably ever know." He said and his eyes shone as tears threaded to break free. Taking a deep breath a grin broke out overs face and his blinked back the tears,

"Helps that you're also an amazing shag." He quipped.

Harry threw his head back and laughed. 

"Yeah? You're not too bad yourself."

"You'll have to let me top next time, you don't know what you're missing out on."  
Harry's stomach jolted as he imagined Draco fucking him and his clock began to stir again.

"Mmmmm, maybe..." He whispered as his hands reached around to grab Draco's arse.

"What's the matter? Scared Potter?" Draco drawled.

"You wish." Harry replied as he pulled Draco closer.


End file.
